Solicitors on the Lenders Panel: What does it mean, why is it important and whose panels are we on?

We have said it before, and we will likely say it again: purchasing a property is one of the most financially demanding ventures that you can undertake. However, it does not only require money and time but also trust, and that trust must flow in all directions within the proceedings in order to make the purchase go smoothly. A hugely important part of buying a property is arranging a mortgage from a mortgage lender, such as a bank. In order to agree to lend you the money for the property, the bank will need to trust you, and this trust can be gained by working with a reputable conveyancing solicitor.

This article will explain the meaning and importance of lenders panels and offer details on the panels Lisa’s Law is already on.

What is a lenders panel?

Quite simply, a lenders panel is a list of solicitors a mortgage lender is happy to work with. The firms on their list are firms in which they trust, and have assessed to be reputable and reliable. Firms they do not trust will not make the panel.

Why do lenders need their own solicitors?

Mortgage lenders are another piece of the puzzle when it comes to purchasing a property, and their needs and security matter just as much as the individual buyer.

They require their own solicitors to make sure that the property is investigated properly, and is worth the loan that they will be providing. Solicitors can also help lenders to make sure that their mortgage is registered against the property at the end of the purchase and to avoid fraud. If lenders simply paid the loan to buyers there is a risk that the buyers could disappear with the loan without the lender’s mortgage being registered. For this reason, lenders never pay loans directly to buyers.

It is worth remembering that lenders legal fees will often be covered by the buyers.

What types of things do solicitors help lenders with?

Solicitors have a range of duties when it comes to advising lenders. For instance, they must report to the lenders’ any change of circumstances. This could be like a buyer’s income dropping during the purchase, divulging information that the buyers are borrowing from friends or family members as well, but lenders do not know about it and therefore may be lending too much. Solicitors can also let lenders know if the property’s prices drops, in which case, the buyers may be borrowing more that they require.

What happens if a buyer is using a firm which is not on the lenders panel?

This is not to be advised as it essentially means that there will be three solicitors required: one for the seller, one for the buyer and a third one for the lender. This means that the process can take much longer and the buyer will have to pay two solicitor’s fees.

What lender panels is Lisa’s Law a member of?

We are pleased to say that we are on all major lenders panels, as we have proven to be a reputable and reliable firm, not only when it comes to conveyancing, but in all of our practice areas. So if you are with HSBC, Lloyds, Santander, Halifax or any other major branch, we are on their trusted list. Not only these larger corporations, but we are also on the panels list of many smaller banks as well.

Find the full list here (updated 11th April 2025).

If you cannot see your chosen lender on here, simply let us know and we will see if we can help. Due to us being on many major lenders panels, it is very simple for us to be added to more.

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Rent Repayment Order not applicable to directors of corporate landlords! What can we learn from a recent case?

There are various reasons that a tenant or a group of tenants may want to pursue a rent repayment order (RRO). One of the more common complaints leading to an RRO is where a landlord is renting out an unlicensed House in Multiple Occupation (HMO), but claims can also be made for the following offences:

Breaches of improvement orders and prohibition notices and of licensing requirements under the Housing Act 2004.

Violent entry under the Criminal Law Act 1977.

Unlawful eviction under the Protection from Eviction Act 1977.

Breach of Banning Orders.

The central target of an RRO is usually the direct landlord of the disgruntled tenants, as they are the ones who have taken the money from them which they wish to claim back. This blog will look into a case in which the appellants pursued an RRO from a director of a commercial landlord company, who himself was not the actual landlord but rather a figurehead of the wider firm. Looking into this interesting case helps us delve further into the nature of HMO’s and learn a valuable lesson on how to increase the chance of such orders being successful.

Let’s look at the case: Kaszowska & Ors v White

A group of ten appellants previously lived in Croydon, in a building that used to be a children’s home. They occupied this building under agreements with Camelot Guardian Management Ltd. Camelot had agreed to provide property guardianship services to the owner of the building, the local authority (LBC), whereby an agreement had been reached regarding tenancy of the building.

While the ten appellants lived in this property, it was technically a HMO, yet it did not have the required HMO license. Camelot was informed by LBC that no such license was required.

Camelot went into voluntary liquidation in 2019, with its same directors opening a new landlord business called Watchtower. It was not until June 2020 that the appellants pursued a RRO against Mr White, a previous director of Camelot, for reasons of running a HMO with no license.

They felt that their case should be fought on two fronts. The first being that whether an offence had been committed by the company Camelot; and secondly, if this was confirmed, it should be considered whether that offence had been committed with the consent of a director, or as a result of the directors negligent behaviour.

Their RRO was not issued, as the First Tier Tribunal clarified that Mr White was not actually the direct landlord, and so cannot pay an RRO, which meant that it had no jurisdiction onver this issue. Furthermore, the fact that Camelot was given incorrect information by LBC regarding the need for a HMO license also left the landlord group in a favourable position, despite the tribunal agreeing with the appellants that a valid HMO licence should have been in place initially.

The case was appealed and taken to the Upper Tribunal, where the following decisions were made:

In its judgment, the Upper Tribunal referred to the case Rakusen v Jepson. In this case it was decided that an RRO could only be made against the immediate landlord of the tenant who had made the application and to whom the rent was paid directly, and therefore it could aptly be applied to Kaszowska & Ors v White.

With this decision in mind, and looking at the facts of the current case, the UT decided that:

1) RROs could only be made against the immediate landlord, not a director of a commercial landlord firm (if that director did not themselves take the rental payments). This is in line with Section 40(2) of the Housing and Planning Act 2016.

2) Repayment by someone who was not the landlord who had actually received the rent from the appellants could not reasonably be contemplated.

Subsequently, the Appellant tenants’ application for an RRO against the Respondent director was dismissed.

Our thoughts

This case demonstrates that in a situation such as this, the most likely way an appellant can claim money back will be to sue the company as opposed to going after one specific director. If the company is struck off, it would be appropriate to apply for it to be re-instated and then sue it. If the company is in financial difficulty, an alternative route would be to apply for it to be liquidated. A director’s conduct will then be under the liquidator’s scrutiny in such circumstances.

Have questions? Get in touch today!

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Right to work checks to see changes from 6 April 2022!

This is one that all employers should be aware of if they do not want to incur a heavy fine for hiring an unauthorized migrant. Right to work checks should apply to all candidates, even British citizens to avoid claims of discrimination, and while they are not mandatory they are extremely useful and can save employers a lot of potential trouble.

What are the current ways to check out a candidates worker rights?

The first option is online right to work checks. This is where the employer looks the person up on the Home Office immigration database, available
Secondly, there is manual right to work checks, where the employer inspects physical ID documents, such as passports or other means of identification.
The third option is virtual right to work checks, which were first brought in during the pandemic. This involves a scan or photo of the ID instead of the physical document.

What is changing on 6 April 2022?

There will be no more manually checking of documentation for right to work checks. Instead, employers will have to carry out a check for individuals holding a Biometric Residence Card, Biometric Residence Permit or Frontier Worker Permit via the Home Office’s online right to work check service. Online will replace manual checks.

To do this, the employer must have the candidate’s date of birth and a valid right to work share code that will be generated by accessing the online system for individuals. This code will work for 30 days.

Retrospective checks will not be necessary for employees where a manual check was completed on or before 5 April 2022.

Also, there will be no more temporary/virtual right to work checks, as this was created specifically for catering to the pandemic. Such checks will end on 5th April 2022.

British and Irish citizens

For British and Irish passport holders, there will be a new system of digital checks that will be introduced. The reason behind this is that the current Home Office online checking service is only for a standard work or residence permit holder, so the new system is an alternative to manual checks for a British or Irish potential employee.

It should be noted that this new system (Identity Document Validation Technology) will likely be a charged service. In this case, checks for British and Irish passport holders should continue as two ways – either manual checks or IDVT for commencing virtual checks.

In conclusion, from 6 April 2022 right to work checks on most migrants will be online and will be cost free, and for British and Irish citizens it will likely be manual (and free) or digital (with a potential cost).

What do we think?

The change makes sense, especially as more and more people are working from home and going to the office less. If the systems work reliably then it should streamline the process for both employer and employee. However, as the Home Office intends to charge for IDVT from £1.45 to £70 per check, it is still unsure if this new digital validation system will really be welcomed by employers as a remote alternative.

Have questions? Get in touch today!

Call us on 020 7928 0276, phone calls are operating as usual and will be taking calls from 9:30am to 6:00pm.

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Does overstaying break the period of lawful residence? An insight from a recent case can tell.

Written by Katherine Chan.

The recent case of R (on the application of Afzal) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] All ER (D) 82 (Dec) sheds light on the contentious issue of continuous lawful residence under paragraph 276 of the Immigration Rules. The Court held in this case that although the appellant’s 14 days of overstaying did not break the period of lawful residence, that period could not count towards the calculation of the requisite ten years continuous lawful residence.

Facts of the case

The appellant, a national of Pakistan, had entered the United Kingdom as a student and was granted entry clearance. Subsequently he was granted subsequent leave to remain. However, before his leave had expired, he applied for an extension of leave, being the first application. His application was rejected for not paying the Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) fees. Then the appellant made a second application for further leave, this time with the IHS fee. The application was successful and he was granted leave to remain.

After completing ten years of continuous lawful residence pursuant to s 276B of the Immigration Rules 2014, the appellant applied for indefinite leave to remain (ILR).The respondent Secretary of State refused the application for ILR as there was a period when the appellant had not been lawfully resident in the country. The appellant challenged that decision by judicial review, which was refused. The appellant appealed.

Issues for consideration

The Court considers three issues in this case: firstly, whether the period during which the leave application fee had not been paid extended the time pending the result of a fresh application for leave, provided that application was made prior to the previous period of leaving coming to an end; secondly, whether the period of overstaying had broken the period of lawful residence, and thirdly, whether this residence counted towards the ten year requirement of continuous lawful residence.

Judgment of the Court of Appeal

In relation to the first issue, the Court held that if the opportunity to pay IHS fees within the specified period was not taken, the application remained invalid and did not become invalid at that point in time. Since the duty to pay forms a part of the application, it was not possible to say that there was a valid application that was only later invalidated by the failure to pay the fee. Therefore, the Appellant’s leave was only extended to the moment when he was notified of the rejection of his application, not a single day more afterwards.

When it comes to the second issue, the period of overstaying had to be disregarded when calculating whether there was the ten year requisite period of continuous lawful residence. The result was that the period of overstaying had not broken the continuity and had not required the period of lawful residence to be started again.

In relation to the third issue, the Court held that the period of overstaying could not be treated as lawful. Therefore, there was a gap between the two applications which, whilst not breaking the period of lawful residence, could not be counted towards the calculation of the requisite ten years’ continuous lawful residence. It could not be said that the appellant had achieved ten years lawful residence by the date of the Secretary of State’s refusal.

Accordingly, even though the court granted the appellant leave to challenge the decision by judicial review, the application was dismissed on the ground that the appellant had not completed ten years’ continuous lawful residence by the date of the decision.

Our thoughts

Taking the facts of this case into consideration, it is clear that the appellant would have been better off, should he have waited for longer before submitting the relevant application so that he will be more likely to fulfil the requirement of lawful residence. The case also serves as a cautionary tale for appellants for indefinite leave to remain, obvious and trivial as it may seem, how important it is to pay application fees in full and in time! For a successful application it is not enough to provide sufficient evidence, but adhere to the requirement of the Home Office.

Lastly, should you have any queries about breaking continuous residence in your leave application, do not hesitate to get in touch with us.

Have questions? Get in touch today!

Call us on 020 7928 0276, phone calls are operating as usual and will be taking calls from 9:30am to 6:00pm.

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More options on offer for Afghan nationals in the UK as situation in their country remains volatile. What can we learn from the new Home Office guidance?

You have likely seen on the news that the political and economic situation in Afghanistan remain in dire circumstances, with the Taliban in full control of the nation. There are reports of many people going without food, shelters being overly full and many businesses being unable to operate properly.

To show support to Afghanistan during this hard time, the UK has launched the Afghan Resettlement Scheme in order to bring people safely over here with the view of rehoming them and allowing them to integrate into our society. This blog will look at how concessions have been changed in order to allow Afghan nationals who either had entered the UK prior to 1 September 2021 or had made an entry clearance application prior to that date and subsequently arrive in the UK. These concessions also apply to their dependants.

Important criteria to be considered under the Afghan concessions

It is integral that applicants meet the below criteria to remain in the UK:

be an Afghan national, or their dependant partner or child

be in the UK lawfully or have been granted an exceptional assurance, or where the applicant has overstayed, paragraph 39E of the Immigration Rules must apply to them

prior to 1 September 2021 have lawfully entered the UK, or made an entry clearance application and subsequently arrived after that date in the UK using that entry clearance, as a:

person on a work or study route set out in Table 1 (main applicants) or Table 2 (dependants) below (links to tables here),
Visitor,
T5 (Temporary Worker) Seasonal Worker/Temporary Work – Seasonal
Worker,
T5 (Temporary Worker) Youth Mobility Scheme/Youth Mobility Scheme,
Short-term Student,
Overseas Domestic Worker,
Domestic Worker in a Private Household, or
Domestic Worker who is a Victim of Modern Slavery

Or,

be applying for permission to stay on a work or study route

meet the requirements of the Immigration Rules for the route on which they are applying, subject to the concessions contained in this guidance.

It is important to remember that when an applicant does meet these criteria, it does not guarantee them a successful application. Each applicant will be considered individually on their own merits.

Switching routes

Some Afghan nationals may be permitted to stay in the UK under a different route to what they are currently on, otherwise known as ‘switching’. Usually, this will require the candidate to return to their home country in order to make such an application. As the situation in Afghanistan means that this is impossible or unadvisable for many people, some concessions have been brought in so that they can switch from inside the UK.

Such concessions will cover those who meet the general requirements above and also meet the following relevant requirements:

the applicant has confirmed in writing that they wish to be considered under this concession and has explained their reasons for applying in-country, rather than returning to Afghanistan to make an entry clearance application: the decision maker does not require detailed evidence as to why returning to Afghanistan would be problematic – they can instead be satisfied with a reasonable written explanation provided with the application.

they have entered the UK on a temporary route and are seeking permission to switch into a route listed in the tables below.

So, should an applicant meet the above criteria, they can apply to UK Visas and Immigration to switch from one route under the Immigration Rules to another. However, they must meet the requirements of the rules of that other route. All applications will be considered on a case by case basis, taking into account all of the circumstances.

Document flexibility

The Home Office will be reasonably flexible when dealing with applicants who cannot provide certain documentation needed for their application. However, this decision will be based on a written explanation from the applicant detailing why they cannot provide the document in question.

For example, the institution which distributes the document may not be operating in Afghanistan at this time. Or, the document must be collected in person, which again may not be possible or advised presently.

If the Home Office is satisfied that due to the situation in Afghanistan a document required by the Immigration Rules cannot reasonably be obtained from Afghanistan, the requirement to provide that document may be waived. Again, all applications will be considered on a case by case basis, taking into account all of the circumstances.

Our thoughts

We are pleased to see the UK take this positive stance on the situation in Afghanistan and have chosen to act in an empathetic and supportive way. People who find themselves in the UK after fleeing the situation in Afghanistan do not deserve to be punished for something that is not their fault, and it is a testament to the UK to provide them with needed support.

If you are reading this and have been affected by the situation in Afghanistan and require any legal advice, we are here for you.

Have questions? Get in touch today!

Call us on 020 7928 0276, phone calls are operating as usual and will be taking calls from 9:30am to 6:00pm.

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Naturalisation – flexibility in the 5 year residence requirement

Written by Mahfuz Ahmed.

A person can apply for naturalisation and become a British Citizen if they satisfy all of the requirements. Some of those requirements include suitability requirements, eligibility requirements and passing the Life in the UK test.

Schedule 1, paragraph 1(2)(a) of the British Nationality Act 1981 states that any applicant must be in the United Kingdom for a period of 5 years prior to the date of the applicant (the five year rule).

The aim of the five-year rule is to ensure that an applicant for citizenship has a clear, strong connection with the UK evidenced by presence in the UK.

This means that an applicant can only be absent for a certain amount of days prior to the application to be eligible.

R (on the application of Vanriel and another) v Secretary of State for the Home Department

In this case the Claimant was born in Jamaica in 1956 and he came to the United Kingdom in 1962 with his mother.

In the 1990’s the Claimant would regularly visit his father and son in Jamaica using his Jamaican passport, which had an Indefinite Leave to Remain stamp.

In 2004, the Claimant attended his father’s funeral in Jamaica. When he sought to return in 2007 he was denied entry as a returning resident.

In 2018, the Claimant was granted a visa as a returning reside under the Windrush scheme. He applied for ILR which was granted. However, when applying for naturalisation he was refused in 2021 as he had not satisfied the five-year rule, that is to say he was not in the UK for 5 years prior to the application. The Secretary of State stated that they had no discretion to waive this requirement.

The Claimant challenged the refusal of his citizenship application by way of Judicial Review.

Judicial Review proceedings

The Claimant argued that they were victims of the type of injustice which had given rise to the Windrush scheme. They were wrongfully prevented to enter the United Kingdom despite having Indefinite Leave to Remain and therefore the 5 year rule could not be satisfied, through no fault of their own.

The Claimant argued that the five-year rule could not be justified as the criteria did not allow discretion, and therefore incompatible with the European Convention of Human Rights. There was indirect discrimination as the present rule did not permit the treatment of different situations to be assessed.

The Court agreed with the Claimant and held making citizenship decisions in the Claimants’ cases by application of the five-year rule with no discretion or flexibility was incompatible with their rights under art 14 in conjunction with art 8.

Our comments

This important decision is much welcome as discretion should be permitted when considering the 5 year rules. Applicant’s may have significant reasons as to why they cannot satisfy this requirement and now the Secretary of State would be obliged to consider those reasons.

Have questions? Get in touch today!

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Welcome Nicklaus!

We are so pleased to welcome Nicklaus this week who joins us as a Paralegal! Already Nicklaus has shown himself to be a highly knowledgeable young man with a great work ethic. We are thrilled to have him at Lisa’s Law.

Nicklaus is an LLB Law graduate from the University of Leeds. He recently finished his Barrister Training Course with BPP University and was called to the Bar back in July 2021.

Nicklaus is interested in conveyancing, commercial and business law and has already gained valuable work experiences in those sectors through various internships and programs. He will be focusing mainly on conveyancing matters here at Lisa’s Law.

In his spare time, Nicklaus enjoys playing basketball and hiking.

Nicklaus is fluent in English, Mandarin, Malay and also has a working proficiency in Cantonese.

Have questions? Get in touch today!

Call us on 020 7928 0276, phone calls are operating as usual and will be taking calls from 9:30am to 6:00pm.

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Post-Brexit Britain starts embracing skilled workers: sponsorship applications triple and near-zero action has been taken against sponsors

Sometimes the best way to figure out what is going on in the world of UK immigration is to take a look at the numbers related to it. We have analysed the data related to the sponsoring of applicants on the Tier 2, 4 and 5 routes. There are some interesting trends that reading this data reveals, and these findings will be the focus of this blog.

Firstly, what are Tier 2, 4 and 5 sponsors?

Tier 2 sponsors are employers of skilled workers.
Tier 4 sponsors are education providers (focussing on students).
Tier 5 sponsors are employees of temporary workers.

Number of registered Sponsors on Points Based System routes

Across each Tier, there has been a steady rise in the number of registered sponsors between Q4 of 2020 and Q3 of 2021. The largest increase has come in for the Tier 2 sponsors, with an additional 5,000 sponsors added within that time frame.

This is indicative of the fact that the Home Office is keen to bring in skilled workers from overseas, therefore incentivising them to allow for more firms to become sponsors of overseas workers. In fact, this is the largest increase of Tier 2 sponsors within such a time period since at least 2014.

Number of sponsor applications made

Keeping in line with the previous point, the largest number of sponsorship applications in recent months has been for the Tier 2 category, meaning that employers are very keen on getting workers from overseas into their businesses. This is a good thing for those looking to make a career in the UK, as opportunities seem to be on the rise for this kind of work.

Applications from Tier 4 and 5 sponsors, on the other hand, are slightly lower than usual but not by a significant amount. This shows that while there is still demand in these positions, uncertainties due to COVID-19 may have made education providers and employers of part time workers less sure about the future.

Length of time taken to process sponsorship applications

The length of time it takes to process applications has increased significantly, especially when looking back at the same data from 2014. Then, such applications for each Tier took under 4 weeks to complete in 80 – 90% of cases. In Q3 of 2021 this has only been the case in 18% of Tier 2 applications, 27% of Tier 4 applications and 23% of Tier 5 applications.

However, it is not necessary to look back that far to see that the length of time it takes to get applications completed is increasing. This creates backlogs of cases and other delays down the road.

One may look at this with an element of understanding when it comes to the Tier 2 applications, as there are now many more cases to deal with. However, the fact that applications for Tier 4 and 5 sponsorships have decreased should mean there is more time to get these completed.

Action against sponsors

There is an interesting trend that we can identify here. Action against sponsors, in this data, relates to the suspension or revocation of the sponsors licence. From 2013 to 2018 there was a slight decrease in this happening, with the exception of 2017 where revocations of Tier 2 sponsors experienced a spike.

If we turn our attention to the beginning and middle of 2020, when COVID-19 was causing major disruptions, we can see that the Home Office was still taking action against sponsors. They were not deterred by the pandemic very much at all.

However, looking at the data from 2021 we can see that hardly any action has been taken against sponsors. This means that they are being far more lenient than before. We presume this is because, after the effects of the pandemic, it is of vital importance to get the economy back up and running, and to do this they must encourage employers to bring in the workers they need to provide services and perform roles that will keep the wheels of society turning, and the money flowing in.

It is easy to criticise the government over this difficult period, but we wonder if the government had taken this stance earlier and not revoked so many sponsorships at the height of coronavirus, it may have worked out better for everyone.

Announcements on future visas

There have been some announcements recently regarding plans to bring in new visas for skilled workers. For example, care workers have been added to the Shortage Occupation List and are eligible for the Care Worker visa. Likewise, Sadiq Khan has announced that he wants to bring in a Temporary Construction Worker visa to help build up the capital, and build more affordable housing. This may result in more sponsorships being allocated to employers in these related fields.

Our thoughts

We are pleased to see that new visa types may be on the horizon, as more skilled workers coming to the UK means growth and prosperity for the nation, but also those who come here to work and make a life for themselves. This data holds some valuable information, and as far as we can see the coming months may look good for international workers coming to work.

Have questions? Get in touch today!

Call us on 020 7928 0276, phone calls are operating as usual and will be taking calls from 9:30am to 6:00pm.

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EU Residency Rights not available to ex-partners who have experienced domestic abuse – what can we learn from a recent case?

We focus on a case today which is just one of many pending cases which have been stagnating since before Brexit, and are potentially affected by alterations of rules due to the UK leaving the European Union. The main issues within this case revolves around the Home Office denying the claimants right of residence in the UK, after he was a victim of domestic abuse at the hands of his durable partner.

In this blog we will examine why the Home Office denied him residency, his appeal of their decision and what this might mean for people in similar situations going forward.

The case in question: Singh vs Secretary of State for Home Department

The claimant in this case, Mr Singh, previously held residency in the UK on the basis of his durable relationship with his EU citizen partner. Due to instances of domestic abuse in the relationship against Singh, the relationship understandably came to an end.

After the breakdown of the relationship, Singh attempted to re-establish his UK residency via the EU Directive 2004/38/EC, which he understood to mean that victims of domestic abuse can retain their right to residency in the UK despite being unmarried to their abuser. He went as far to say that any other outcome which did not match his expectations would be equal to discriminatory behaviour.

In response, the Home Office were not willing to give Singh the result he was aiming for. They claimed that the time to rely on such legislation had expired, as such protection for victims of domestic abuse were only to be relied on where the durable relationship was still intact. In the case of Mr Singh, his relationship had ended quite some time before he raised the issue with the Home Office.

Singh went on to appeal this decision, but to his dismay the tribunal agreed with the Home Office. They found that the law on the issue was clear in that only where the durable relationship exists can a person benefit from such rules, and that in Mr Singh’s case too much time had passed, and the fact that he had never been married to his abuser, stood against him. They focussed on the fact that the legislation makes distinctions between direct family members (including spouses/civil partners) and extended family members (including durable partners), and has done so since the first European legislation on the issue.

It was concluded that The European Union clearly decided that certain family relationships will be protected, and others will not. Therefore, Mr Singh’s appeal was unsuccessful.

What does the EU Settlement Scheme say when it comes to residency for victims of domestic abuse?

The current rules state the following:

If you are a victim of domestic violence or abuse

You can apply if your family relationship to someone from the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein who was living in the UK by 31 December 2020 has broken down permanently because of domestic violence or abuse.

You can apply if you are or were their:

spouse or civil partner
unmarried partner
child, grandchild or great-grandchild under 21 years old
dependent child, grandchild or great-grandchild over the age of 21
dependent parent, grandparent or great-grandparent
other dependent relative

Our thoughts

Some may look at Mr Singh’s case and feel like he was served an injustice, and they would have every right to feel this way. Domestic abuse is an extremely serious issue which can have life altering effects on those that fall victim to it, and those people deserve to be supported. That being said, there of course has to be some form of order and lines have to be drawn when it comes to the law so that everyone is treated fairly and held to the same standards. In this case, the amount of time that had passed meant that the durable relationship had been dissolved long enough for the Home Office to deem its relevance depleted in the case of Mr Singh’s residency.

We would urge people who find themselves in a similar situation to Mr Singh to act quickly, and assess their options in relation to the EU Settlement Scheme, as this looks to be the more reliable route to retaining UK residency. As always, we are here to help.

Have questions? Get in touch today!

Call us on 020 7928 0276, phone calls are operating as usual and will be taking calls from 9:30am to 6:00pm.

Email us on info@lisaslaw.co.uk.

Use the Ask Lisa function on our website. Simply enter your details and leave a message, we will get right back to you: https://lisaslaw.co.uk/ask-question/

Or, download our free app! You can launch an enquiry, scan over documents, check progress on your case and much more!

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New guidance released to combat Property-Title-Fraud! What does it mean, and what can you do to stop it?

Purchasing a property is many peoples main lifetime goal, and often takes a lot of hard work, time and dedication to achieve. Not to mention the ever increasing costs of property in the UK. It is no surprise then that fraudsters will try to target those who are so close to completing the purchase of a property and strike at the absolute worst moment, leaving the would-be homeowners in a desperate situation, financially and emotionally.

This blog will focus on how this kind of property fraud often occurs and some new guidance which can help people avoid falling victim to it.

What is Property Title Fraud?

Property title fraud is quite rare in the grand scheme of things, but when it does occur it can do substantial damage and can lead to people losing their homes.

The main bulk of the scam involves a fraudster changing the registered details of a building so that they can pose as the buildings rightful owner. Once this has been done, the fraudster can apply for a mortgage or sell the property to a buyer and then vanish with the proceeds.

Essentially, they temporarily steal their victim’s identity, or that of someone else involved in a property purchase such as a conveyancer, in order to gain personal reward.

The year of 2020/21 garnered 22 claims of property title fraud. This may not sound like too much, but these claims led to a massive £3.5m worth of compensation of pay outs.

People who own houses that are left empty for long periods are particularly vulnerable to property title fraud, as well as properties which have a high value, are not mortgaged, or whose owners have recently passed away.

What does the new guidance suggest?

There are ways to fortify yourself and your property from the fraudsters who mean to take advantage of you. Some of which may be simpler than you think, and will definitely be worth doing. The below advice is from the Fraud Advisory Panel, HM Land Registry and the Law Society of England and Wales.

Firstly, it is important to remember that all homeowners are at risk of such fraud, but some are more at risk than others. For example, higher risk cases include:

Property owners who are:

Absent (eg, extended holiday, living abroad, in a care home or hospital)
Landlords
Deceased
Long-standing
Sole

Properties which are:

Not registered with HM Land Registry
Not mortgaged
Rented out
High value
Empty

Tips to make yourself safer!

Register you property with the HM Land Registry:

This is a very simple but effective step that can make life a lot easier for homeowners. Being registered with the HM Land Registry creates an official record that can be checked by anyone who needs to confirm your ownership and gives extra legal protections. If you do suffer a loss from this kind of fraud you might be entitled to compensation from HM Land Registry (depending on the circumstances).

If you are not registered it is much easier for a fraudster to forge some paper deeds and use them to register your property in their name, leaving you exposed to serious trouble.

Keep your registered details up to date:

Let the HM Land Registry know of any name changes of address changes that occur. They may need to send you official letters or notices which can act as an early sign of fraud. It is straightforward and quick to update your details, so make any changes as soon as possible.

Monitor your register entries:

All this requires is a simply signing up to HM Land Registry’s free property alert service. If someone tries to change the register for your property, potentially indicating fraudulent activity, you will be notified immediately. This is an extremely handy service and will give you some peace of mind.

This service can be used to monitor up to 10 properties, allowing you to take swift and effective action on any unwanted activity.

Restrict your property title:

If you or your property are at particular risk of fraudulent transfers, for example you fall into one of the categories above, it is worth considering applying for a ‘restriction’ to be placed on your title. It can come with a small fee but it is worth it.

What this means is that in the event of an attempted sale, a title restriction requires the conveyancer to formally certify that it really is the legitimate owner who is making the sale. It is another strong barrier against fraudsters, and can massively disrupt their plans.

Our thoughts

The guidance on offer here is sound, and many of the tips are very easy to put into practice. The phrase ‘better safe than sorry’ springs to mind, and what may take up half an hour of your day to get organised may just save you months of stress if you are targeted by fraudsters.

Fraud of all types is rife at the moment. If you are sent an email that you find suspicious, or are offered a deal on something that sounds too good to be true, always seek another opinion before clicking a link or agreeing to any kind of transaction. If it turns out that what you were offered was real, then a small delay will not matter. However, if you rush into something which is phoney, it can seriously upset your life. Be careful, and as always we are always here to help!

Have questions? Get in touch today!

Call us on 020 7928 0276, phone calls are operating as usual and will be taking calls from 9:30am to 6:00pm.

Email us on info@lisaslaw.co.uk.

Use the Ask Lisa function on our website. Simply enter your details and leave a message, we will get right back to you: https://lisaslaw.co.uk/ask-question/

Or, download our free app! You can launch an enquiry, scan over documents, check progress on your case and much more!

Links to download below:

iPhone: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/lisas-law/id1503174541?ls=1

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lisaslaw

lisaslaw@web

See Full Bio

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