FTAdviser.com

Advertising

Anthony Badaloo, manager of Hertforshire-based IFA Church Hill Finance, said he usually used the bigger high street lenders but in a break from the norm he recently placed business with Coventry Building Society. He was pleasantly surprised by the service he received and hailed the society as a "bit of a gem".

Mr Badaloo said: "Coventry Building Society have been a revelation for a small provincial lender. I found it has competitive rates, which are combined with relatively low fees. It also has a fantastic website and the online systems are excellent.

"Their customer service is as good as any out there. It is not perfect, but is definitely up there with the best in the market. Before we tended to use the more established players but after using the Coventry we have been very pleased.

"On top of providing a good service, it can tolerate a little bit of adverse business as well, which helps in these times. The society is also tolerant with people who might have a few other properties or who might be doing a buy-to-let application, so in general it has been a bit of a gem."

Lender says...

Colin Franklin, head of sales for Coventry Building Society and managing director of Godiva Mortgages Ltd, said: "It is always good to read comments like this. At the Coventry and Godiva, we are committed to the intermediary market and it is always good to know that our efforts are appreciated by advisers.

"Despite these difficult times, we have maintained our unique pledges to intermediaries and we continue to receive accolades for the service we deliver. My only surprise is that the adviser sees us as a "small provincial lender" when the Coventry is in fact the fourth largest building society and a Top 20 lender with UK wide distribution."

FACT

Godiva Mortgages Limited is the lending subsidiary of Coventry Building Society and was launched in 2007.

Cheltenham & Gloucester

Jon Willis, company director of East Yorkshire-based Unity Independent Financial Planning Ltd, said he had noticed an improvement in the service at Cheltenham & Gloucester, most noticeably with its online system.

Mr Willis said: "The online system these days is very good. As long as everything with the application is fairly straightforward then it goes through pretty quickly.

"I did however find it a bit difficult ringing through on the telephone if I needed any queries answered. Still, it has improved recently. When it first came online it was terrible, you could end up waiting 15 or 20 minutes if you were unlucky, but it is a bit better now, I only waited on the telephone trying to get through at the initial stage of the process. The staff are fine - both polite and knowledgeable - so I had no problems there.

"Generally, the speed in which offers came through was good and the service from the administration staff was positive. It was only when there was a query that problems arose."

Lender says...

Kevin Purvey, head of intermediary sales for Cheltenham & Gloucester, said: "Last summer we changed the way we work with intermediaries. They told us they wanted the speed of technology combined with a personal service and we have based our new offer on providing the best of both worlds.

"We launched our online tool, Caseflow, in June and it is proving to be an enormous success, now processing about 90 per cent of all applications.

"In the autumn, we launched a new telephone system to answer intermediary queries on their applications. Due to the unprecedented market conditions and fewer lenders actively competing in the market, we are experiencing enormous demand for our products.

"We appreciate that has led to delays in dealing with some of the more complicated cases but we have recruited and trained extra staff and expect the situation will improve quickly. We value the support that intermediaries continue to give our business."

FACT

Cheltenham & Gloucester Plc is part of the Lloyds TSB group.