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Before the credit crunch the majority of lenders were keen on attracting new customers.

But with the scramble to create low-risk high-quality loan books it is no surprise that lenders are now adopting a proactive approach to try to retain their existing mortgage customers with low loan-to-values.

The FSA is predicting as many as 1.4m people will come to the end of their fixed rate introductory period this year, and somewhere in the region of 120,000 people looked to remortgage in August alone.

So what lenders are currently courting those looking to remortgage and what types of customers do they have their eye on?

Those who have been noted for their move to retain customers include Lloyds TSB's newly acquired HBoS, Woolwich and Accord, which have all recognised the role of the adviser in retaining existing borrowers.

Many offer customers who require lower loan-to-values better rates and in some cases a raft of incentives for the mortgage adviser if they recommend a client stays with their current lender.

Jonathan Cornell, managing director of London-based intermediary Hamptons International Mortgages, said: "Halifax has a very successful retention scheme that rewards advisers for their efforts in keeping the client with the lender.

"But on the other hand you have Northern Rock, which has been concentrating on allowing its existing clients to leave at the end of the term rather than keeping them as it had done in the past to help pay back its government debt and so far it is ahead of its plan."

David Hollingworth, head of communications for Bath-based advisers London & Country Mortgages, said it would be the major players such as Abbey, Nationwide, Halifax, Woolwich and Cheltenham & Gloucester competing for quality, low LTV remortgagers.

He said: "As borrowers have become increasingly well educated about the benefits of shopping around to get a better deal, fewer borrowers have been sitting on the lenders standard variable rate and profitability has been hit.

"Therefore lenders have gradually moved away from the SVR or nothing approach and looked to come up with a better deal for their existing borrowers."

Mr Hollingworth said initiatives from lenders aimed at retaining clients had ranged from simply opening up a specific range of deals to existing customers to offering the same products and rates they would have once solely offered to entice new borrowers.

Ricky Okey, managing director of Abbey for Intermediaries, said with such a large portion of the overall market looking to remortgage it was vital for lenders to have a well structured retention strategy.

But he pointed out that the importance of establishing a plan to keep existing customers was as true for lenders as it was intermediaries.

Mr Hollingworth said: "The strength of tapping into the remortgage market to retain business levels is that, on the whole, intermediaries have confidence that more lenders will be open to this part of the business because their clients represent a lower-risk.

"As more lenders begin to return to the market, rates are becoming more competitive and intermediaries should be encouraging their clients to make the most of the products available now.

"The volatility of the market is such that these rates may not be around for long and intermediaries have an opportunity to encourage clients whose mortgage deals are soon to expire to at least start their search for a new rate now."

Melanie Bien, director of London-based adviser Savills Private Finance, said lenders who grew their market share during the credit crunch had partly attributed their success to their improved retention products and this had led to a shift in attitude among lenders.

She said: "With lenders reassessing their attitude to risk, good-quality borrowers – with relatively low loan-to-values and squeaky clean credit histories – are worth hanging onto.

"Why push ahead with recruiting new customers who you do not know, when you have more than enough decent customers already?"

Ms Bien said this change in approach in turn had led to strategies of rewarding advisers who were able to retain the "right clients for the right products".

However, she pointed out that not all clients retained in this current environment stuck with their existing lender for the right reasons or out of choice.

Hampton's Mr Cornell said the increase in product headline rates had also seen lenders hold on to increasing numbers of existing clients as many found going onto the standard variable rate was cheaper and easier than remortgaging and this had particularly been the case for buy-to-let loans.

Mr Cornell said: "Most lenders offer borrowers some kind of remortgage package with a free valuation and conveyancing.

"Borrowers with little or no equity have the least choice of new lenders at the end of their mortgage and for most of them SVR is their only choice.

"Borrowers with 40 per cent plus equity in their property have a massive range of attractive rates to choose from and some of these will be almost 2 per cent cheaper than some lenders SVRs."

Savills' Ms Bien said a potential pitfall from lender's focusing on low LTV borrowers was that many existing borrowers could get stuck on the SVR.

This is because their LTV is so high, above 90 or 95 per cent, that they cannot find another lender to take them on or their own lender will not offer them a fixed or discounted variable rate.

She said: "Those who have missed mortgage payments will also find it much harder to remortgage elsewhere so may have to stay put.

"The jump in monthly mortgage payments will be considerable so the best option they have is to try and reduce their LTV, if possible, and keep a close eye on deals until a better one emerges."