Santander for Intermediaries (SFI) has confirmed the refresh of its Introducer Internet mortgage platform for Monday 7 April 2014, ahead of the implementation of the Mortgage Market Review (MMR).

The lender claims its refreshed free online mortgage platform will offer intermediaries an improved system for submitting client applications, with new and enhanced functionality.

There will be no changes to the way the lender assesses affordability.

The refreshed Introducer Internet will:

• Offer intermediaries an improved way of capturing their client’s income details on Introducer Internet, aligning them more closely to SFI’s existing affordability calculator;
• Further improve the capture of their client’s financial commitments whilst still assessing affordability in exactly the same way;
• Utilise new Automated Income Verification (AIV) service to compare a client’s current account turnover through a Credit Reference Agency against their stated income. As a result, in some cases brokers will not need to provide income evidence;
• In line with MMR requirements SFI’s Fast Track service will be removed;
• Enable more efficient capturing of additional information for Existing Santander Mortgage Customers Moving Home wishing to borrow the same or less to provide a more flexible lending decision.

To enable these changes, SFI’s Introducer Internet will be unavailable from close of business on Friday 4 April until 07:00 hours on Monday 7 April 2014 while the system is refreshed. During this time intermediaries will be unable to submit any cases.

SFI’s Agreement In Principle (AIP) decisions and credit searches are currently valid for 60 days. In anticipation of the refresh, SFI is advising intermediaries that any cases which have not been submitted as a Full Mortgage Application (FMA) by close of business on Friday 4 April 2014 will require a new AIP or FMA to be created and decisioned on the refreshed Introducer Internet platform from Monday 7 April 2014.

All FMA cases already submitted by close of business on Friday 4 April 2014 will not be affected and will continue to be processed in the usual manner.

SFI dedicated sales contacts will be providing more information and demonstrations to their intermediaries over the coming weeks. In addition, intermediaries will be able to access the Introducer Internet training material on SFI’s website from Monday 24 March. For further information, intermediaries should contact their dedicated sales contact.

Brad Fordham, managing director of Santander for Intermediaries, said: “Ensuring intermediaries get the best experience and the right outcome for their clients every time, has been a key focus for SFI as we prepare for MMR. Our refreshed Introducer Internet platform, which will be live from 07:00 hours on Monday 7 April 2014, will play a critical part in the mortgage application journey and the refresh will offer new and improved functionality to help make the transition to MMR as smooth as possible.

“To ensure intermediaries and their clients avoid unnecessary activity and duplication, we’re advising all brokers to submit their client’s Full Mortgage Application (FMA) by close of business on Friday 4 April 2014 so they can be processed in the usual manner. Any cases that have not been submitted as an FMA by this time will require a new AIP or FMA to be created and decisioned. In the lead up to the launch of our refreshed Introducer Internet platform, we’ll be working with our intermediary partners to help familiarise them with the new system. Additional Introducer Internet training material will also be available on www.santanderforintermediaries.co.uk from Monday 24 March.

“Writing quality business is at the heart of what we do and we will continue to assess affordability in the same way, working closely with our intermediary partners to ensure borrowers are offered the right mortgage for their needs. MMR has presented an excellent opportunity for us to refresh our systems and processes to ensure we can continue to support the intermediary market.”