Old fashioned values will help brokers protect clients

The last year has seen mortgage volumes and values collapse in spectacular style and brokers can no longer expect business to walk through their door.

For those brokers that want to remain in the market in the long term and continue to provide a valuable and effective service to clients, Burgess says it will be necessary for many firms to re-evaluate the way they operate and the level of contact they have with clients.

“Many mortgage brokers had got used to business flooding through their door and in the face of such demand, keeping in contact with clients and offering them additional services was not the priority.”

However now the stream of new business is so weak, Burgess said those brokers that were able to mine their existing database of clients and help them adapt to the changing financial environment would be best placed to see out the downturn.

“Unemployment is on the rise and many borrowers who had not considered PPI necessary may well feel differently about putting protection in place. Brokers should be contacting all of the clients they have worked with in recent years and offering them a review of their situation and help with putting protection in place,” said Burgess.

Even for clients that have PPI in place, Burgess said it was likely that many could be paying less for their policy or could secure more flexible and effective cover by changing provider.

Independent Intermediaries like British Insurance have shown the huge difference in price between the cheapest and most expensive policies in the market, but still too many consumers are paying over the odds.

“There is a great opportunity,” claimed Burgess, “For brokers to get in touch with clients, reassess their protection needs and perhaps pick up some remortgage business as well.”