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Free legals/Optima

Journalist: Anna Sagar, Mortgage Solutions / Specialist Lending Solutions

ended 09. February 2023

Looking to speak to mortgage brokers who have had recent interactions or cases with Optima Legal.

  1. What was your experience like? Were there parts of the process that could have been improved?
  2. Would you recommend Optima Legal?
  3. What can conveyancers/lenders do to improve free legal process?

10 responses from the Newspage community

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Platinum
Justin Moy
Managing Director at EHF Mortgages
Unfortunately, any of the free legal firms can be very hard to work with and typically don't respond to the broker that easily. Optima are popular with lenders, I guess mostly due to cost, but It would be rare for us to recommend them unfortunately. I normally recommend my clients take the cashback and we look to use one of a number of firms that will use the cashback in part or full payment of the legal work needed. This allows us more control over the case, intervene where necessary, and can even supply some documents if required. To improve the free legal process, I would ask that the broker is kept in regular contact, with key stage updates, and work promptly - we all have a common goal and a common client.
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Platinum
Craig Fish
Director at Lodestone Mortgages & Protection
Recently had a diabolical case with Optima legal that has cost my client significant £££'s in additional mortgage payments. The whole process could have been improved, but most importantly communication and 'proper' answers not just flimsy 'excuses' of a comment. I would never recommend Optima again, they are truly diabolical. I also think that the lenders who recommend these services need to be more heavily involved. The bad service not only reflects on the legal firm but also to the lender and the broker for their recommendation.
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Premium
Gindy Mathoon
Senior Mortgage Broker at Create Finance
I generally try to avoid Optima legal at all costs. Nearly every interaction with them has been a disappointing experience. You can be on hold for hours if you try and call and when you do get through trying to be put in front of the right person can be a painful process. Updating both the broker and customer through the journey would be a good start for them to improve the process. Lenders that use Optima legal need to hold them more to account for when customers receive a bad experience. Lenders just dont want to know if anything goes wrong. Most lenders now offer cashback as an option which gives the customer a better choice. Conveyancers need a better process in place to deal with the volume of customers that come there way
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Luke Thompson
Director at PAB Wealth Management
Dealing with Optima Legal is hard work for mortgage advisers and for customers. Frustration occurs when neither the mortgage lender, adviser or customer are able to get Optima to progress a case. Often times you can phone up and speak to someone in the contact centre who tells you one thing a couple of days later you can call and be told something completely different.

I couldn't recommend Optima Legal to my customers due to the poor levels of customer service I have received on numerous occasions.

To improve the free legal process lenders need to pay these free legal firms more so that they can afford to staff their offices to the levels of business they are receiving. Alternatively offering cashback deals so customers can choose their own conveyancer will greatly improve the remortgage process.
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Steven Morris
Advising Director at Advantage Financial Solutions
Having once heard what firms like Optima legal are paid per case on free legals, it verges on being described as "sweatshop". It's hardly a surprise the service customers receive is abominable. They never answer the phone and miss offer expiry dates despite continued chasing. Where possible, get cashback, choose your conveyancer, it won't cost you much extra. The only Improvement to free legals possible is for lenders to pay conveyancers more per case, creating more time per customer.
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Jamie Lennox
Director at Dimora Mortgages
There is certainly nothing optimal about Optima and we now cry a little bit inside when a lender allocates them as part of their free legal package. We recently had a case which took close to 6 months to complete due to a lack of actions from Optima with the case not being actioned for weeks on end and a lack of ability to ever speak to a case handler. Countless formal complaints were raised but zero were ever acknowledged by the company and just brushed off time and time again. Their whole business model needs a review from top to bottom as it tarnishes the whole industry.
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Joe Stallard
Director and Advisor at House and Holiday Home Mortgages
As seems to be the case with lots of larger property conveyancers, Optima Legal can go through periods of good and bad service, as business levels fluctuate.

Our more recent experiences with them have been positive and long may this continue!

Their current system of automated email checkpoints is a benefit to customers, providing clarity on the activity done and what's still outstanding. With some further developments, it could be even more useful.
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Austyn Johnson
Founder at Mortgages For Actors
Please, find the cashback option.
I'm sure if the pressure was off of them, they would improve. But my experience is that they are too busy to even talk to the clients outside of the tick boxing. A shame.
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Rhys Schofield
Brand Director at Peak Mortgages and Protection
Just don't do it to yourself or your client. Advisors know using 'free legals' is likely to be a very bumpy road at best and our job as advisors is to advise clients to at least consider a cashback product to use a good remortgage conveyancer. Everyone will be much happier.
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Jordan Price
Operations Director at Castle View Finance
What was your experience like? Were there parts of the process that could have been improved?
A very poor experience, they are unresponsive and slow to process offers.

Would you recommend Optima Legal?
unfortunately not, many clients have commented that they would not get responses from emails or have their phone calls returned.

What can conveyancers/lenders do to improve free legal process?
communication is key. If they provide updates to the clients and they took a more proactive approach, this would provide peace of mind for the clients who will be reassured that their case is being worked on. Some clients have questioned if anyone is viewing their case due to their unresponsive nature.