Paradigm has announced the launch of a new Lender Product Withdrawals Directory for intermediary firms.

The mortgage, protection and compliance services proposition said it believes the Directory is the first of its kind in the mortgage industry and includes the Product Withdrawal policies of over 50 lenders currently on the Paradigm lender panel.

The Directory shows each of the listed lenders’ expected product notice period policy split between: less than 24 hours; 24 hours; 48 hours; 48 hours-plus; and those who have not yet specified or have no set timeframe.

The document then covers each individual lender, the notice period they have outlined and, in most instances, a detailed commentary from each explaining the policy and its past performance.

Paradigm said its intention was to provide clarity to adviser firms who could then use this information in their lender selection alongside other factors such as price, criteria, affordability, financial strength and product transfer policies.

The distributor has committed to maintaining and updating the Directory as it receives further responses and amendments, and points out that the policies outlined may not be ‘set in stone’, and might not always be adhered to due to a combination of factors including market volatility and the ability to maintain service levels and margins.

All intermediary firms can download the latest Lender Product Withdrawal Directory by visiting: https://www.paradigm.co.uk/mortgages/services/mortgage-helpdesk-support-hub#lender-product-withdrawal-schedule

Richard Howes (pictured), director of mortgages at Paradigm, said: “There’s no doubt that, in a very volatile mortgage market recently, the issue of product withdrawals and specifically the notice period provided to advisers and their clients has been a hot topic. There have been calls for an industry-wide commitment to at least 24-hours’ notice and we know that very short notice periods for either product pulls or rate changes, heap a significant amount of pressure on advisers and lenders which increases their workload considerably.

“At Paradigm we’re committed to supporting our member firms through challenging times, and therefore have built what we believe is the first Directory of its kind in the mortgage market, to outline the withdrawal policies and criteria of the majority of lenders currently on our panel.

“Our aim here is to provide an extra layer of information and education to advisers which they can build into their research work for clients, and they can utilise in order to come to their final product/lender recommendation.

“As we receive further information, or indeed as more lenders amend their policies in this area, we will update the Directory so it is a living and breathing document that firms can tap into whenever they need to.”