More 2 Life has announced a new initiative to make its senior underwriters available to speak to advisers.

Advisers will be able to speak to an underwriter regarding any difficult or complex customer cases which they may have in the pipeline. Advisers can contact More 2 Life’s existing helpline to discuss any cases which require special consideration prior to application.

As well as offering this additional support, the equity release lender has also implemented a suite of training modules, specifically designed for its broker support and account manager teams. The internal training will cover all areas of More 2 Life’s lending criteria from a basic level right through to the more complex, allowing the support teams a chance to achieve an accreditation in underwriting.

Stuart Wilson, channel marketing director at More 2 Life, said: “We have been working closely with advisers and listening to their feedback to ensure More 2 Life is offering the support they need to find the right solutions for their clients. At our recent Specialist Adviser Roadshow events, we had advisers telling us how important it is to be able to discuss difficult cases directly with an underwriter and so we have responded.

“The equity release market shows no signs of slowing down. With a growing number of homeowners considering equity release as a central tool for retirement financial planning, advisers may soon find they encounter more unusual customer cases. Through our dedicated underwriter assistance and internal training programme, we will have experts in place to help advisers throughout the pre-application process and provide them with the answers they need to place their cases.”

Martin Heppenstall, chief underwriting officer at More 2 Life, added: “At More 2 Life we fully understand the important role that advisers play in the equity release market and the hard work which goes into every case prior to contacting a lender. We are dedicated to building the knowledge within our adviser support teams by having a mandated senior underwriter present with them at all times to respond to queries.

“We hope that advisers will take advantage of this added level of service, as it will help them to handle complicated cases and quickly deal with any issues that may arise. We are confident this will be seen as innovative step forward and a useful tool for advisers who are thinking about entering the retirement lending industry.”