A committed broker charter, modern branding, new resources and a common sense approach to lending is what brokers and key distributors have said they want - and what Skipton Intermediaries have said they will receive from now on.
The intermediary arm of Skipton Building Society, the UK’s fourth largest mutual, has carried out extensive research over the past 18 months with its intermediary partners to fully understand their specific needs. This has involved in depth face-to-face interviews, online surveys, and quantitative research – as well as continuous feedback from day-to-day dealings. The outcome of this consultation is a new chapter for Skipton Intermediaries – what they are calling a common sense approach to real life lending.
In their real life lending charter, Skipton have pledged no dual pricing and no proactive marketing of home or life insurance to clients. They have also promised that for cases where a KFI has been produced, five working days will be given to submit a full mortgage application following a product withdrawal. They also placed emphasis on clear and straightforward communications with professional partners. In addition to the charter, from today brokers now have access to a refreshed and more relevant website.
Paul Darwin, Skipton’s Head of Intermediary Relationships, said:
“Skipton Intermediaries has had much more than a face-lift. We have made substantial, forward thinking developments, motivated by an overwhelming desire to put brokers at the centre of everything we do.
“ A great deal of time has been invested in getting under the skin of our broker partners, key distributors and customers to really understand what they want and need from us. For the last year they have been taking the time to give us their insight on how we can help add value to their business. And today sees the culmination of those collaborative efforts.
“Mortgages make a real difference to people’s lives and Skipton Intermediaries works tirelessly to help people realise their housing dreams every day. But we recognise that it’s so much more than that for brokers. For many, they’re a key link in their local community – helping it grow, develop and flourish, and that’s a professional responsibility they take very seriously. Today marks a day where we can genuinely say that after all our listening, we recognise this.
