McLean Kelly

TREATING CUSTOMERS FAIRLY STATEMENT

Treating Customers Fairly is not new to McLean Kelly and remains central to our business strategy and culture. We are committed to the fair treatment of customers through open and transparent relationships.  We look forward to being of service to you and thank you for the opportunity to source a product for you.

THE WAY WE DO BUSINESS
Throughout our association with you, we are committed to giving you the highest standard of service and customer care, both before, during and after your mortgage or insurance completes. We will be open and straight forward with you and conduct our affairs with honesty. We want you to be happy as we would like to build a long-term relationship.

Our aim as mortgage and insurance advisors is to provide a client focused quality service. We appreciate and understand that your mortgage is likely to be the largest financial commitment you will undertake, and we are committed to finding a suitable product for you. For insurance products, we will source premiums that are within your affordability.

Our role is to help you understand how a product works and how control of the repayments is essential for prudent money management. We will give you an explanation of the repayment methods, the implications of taking a mortgage or insurance policy and any associated fees that may apply.  We will strive to be transparent in everything we do and to make our advice: clear, fair and not misleading.  Periodically, we review and update our paperwork that is given to clients in order that our communication and information standards are maintained.  We have a number of help sheets available to give you a greater insight and understanding of how a product works, however, if there is anything you do not understand, please inform us and we will go over it until you do.

MEETING YOUR NEEDS
At the outset we will need to ask you questions about your needs and circumstances before we can advise you or recommend a suitable product. Completion of a Fact Find is necessary to ascertain your circumstances in order to give appropriate advice on mortgage and insurance products.  We will also require a signed Declaration, giving us your permission to discuss your personal requirements with providers of products. 

HOW YOU CAN HELP US WITH YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
It is your responsibility to answer all questions honestly and correctly and to disclose anything you think we should know. Please contact us at our address if you have any reason to believe the data we hold on you is inaccurate. Please provide as much information as you can on your income and outgoings as this will help us to recommend products within your affordability.  Please also tell us if you have credit cards, loans or a bad credit history as it will make a difference to the products available.  For Insurance, depending on the product, it is vital that you disclose your personal medical history and any claims you have made.  Non disclosure can result in a claim not being paid.  If you feel uncomfortable disclosing personal details about your medical history, these can always be disclosed to the product provider’s Medical Officer.

Before deciding on a mortgage or an insurance product, you will be issued with a document called, ‘Key Facts About Our Services and Costs’ and our Terms of Business which we will ask you to sign. These two documents outline the services we offer and fees that may apply. Our charges will not be excessive for the amount of work we do for you. We will seek to reduce the financial burden and provide adequate insurance protection for you and your family.

We have access to various sourcing systems and will source the market and recommend suitable products that we consider to be best for your particular circumstances. If available to your circumstances, we will provide you with a choice of products and before you accept our advice, we will clearly explain the main benefits and any risks that may be associated with the product.  If we cannot find a suitable product, we will tell you.  Even if you have requested an Interest Only payment for your mortgage, we will always give you monthly repayments for a full repayment (Capital & Interest) mortgage in order to give you a comparison.  Our FSA permissions do not allow us to give you investment advice, therefore, should you require this advice for an investment vehicle to pay the capital off your mortgage, we can give you the name of an IFA who will help you with this.

Once everything is acceptable to you, you will receive a Key Facts Illustration (KFI), which will provide you with information about the chosen mortgage or insurance product. Details of a mortgage loan will be confirmed in your lender's formal offer, and although we check this through, we strongly advise you to read it through carefully before proceeding with a product.  The same thing is applicable for Insurance products.
Following submission of your application, we will keep you updated with the progress of your mortgage or protection insurance. We constantly chase the mortgage lender/insurance provider and solicitor for a swift completion.

CREDIT SEARCHES
For mortgage applications and other financial services, lenders will carry out a Credit Search from a Credit Reference Agency (usually Equifax or Experian) which will leave a recorded search on your credit file. Multiple searches may adversely affect your credit profile and may make credit harder for you to obtain. Information held about you by a credit reference agency may already be linked to records relating to another person that you are linked to i.e. a partner, spouse or other members of your household.  Information can also be taken from the following organisations:-

A mortgage lender or other financial services provider does not need to tell you why you have been refused a mortgage or other loan.  To obtain your own credit file, the following credit reference agencies are as follows and lenders will use one of these:-

Experian Ltd
Consumer Help Services
PO Box 7710
Nottingham
NG80 7WE
www.experian.co.uk

Equifax plc
Credit File Advice Centre
PO  Box 1140
Bradford
West Yorkshire
BD1 5US
www.equifax.co.uk

Call Credit Ltd
Consumer Services Team
One Park Lane
Leeds
LS3 1WZ
Telephone: 0870 060 1414
www.callcredit.co.uk

COUNCIL OF MORTGAGE LENDERS REPOSSESSION REGISTER
The Council of Mortgage Lenders Repossession Register is available to its members through the main credit reference agencies. If you have had a property repossessed or have given it up voluntarily, this will show on the register.

YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION AND DATA PROTECTION
You can visit us online without providing any personal information. All organisations that collect and process data are covered by the Data Protection Act 1988 and your information will be kept in accordance with the requirements of this Act. For more information on the Data Protection Act, please visit their website:  www.ico.gov.uk.  We would like to make it clear that we treat the information you give us with great care and keep it as secure as possible.  Our security procedures mean that we will request proof of identity and residency before we are able to disclose sensitive information to you.  By “your information” this means your personal and financial information. The majority of information held is stored electronically and when it is not in use, it is stored in a safe.  Hard copies that have been placed onto the electronic system, are then shredded. Should we visit you and put the information you provide onto a laptop, it is taken off on our return to the office and then placed onto a more secure electronic system. All laptops are password protected.

We will treat all your personal information as private and confidential (even when you are no longer a customer) except when the law requests it; when disclosure is made at your request and consent in relation to your request.  You have the right to inspect any documentation we hold in respect of our dealings with you. There will be a £10 charge for this request. Requests must be put in writing with a certified copy of your ID and Proof of Residency. This documentation will be sent to you no later than 40 days following receipt of your request and a cheque for £10.00, which must be delivered by post to our address :-
The Data Protection Officer
McLean Kelly
P O Box 779
Richmond
TW9 1TS

LISTENING TO YOU
Following completion of business with you, we will send you a short questionnaire. Please fill this in, even if you feel something has not been to your satisfaction, as this helps monitor our service to you and take steps to improve it.

KEEPING YOU INFORMED ABOUT NEW PRODUCTS OR SERVICES
We would like to keep you informed by email, telephone call or post about new products or services which may be of interest to you, or our newsletter.  If you do not wish to receive notifications of this nature, please let us know, however, in opting out, you may be missing out on a valuable product or service.

UNDERSTANDING OUR ADVICE
Tremendous effort is made to help you and make everything clear and fair, however, please let us know if anything is unclear or if any documents are confusing.  We will do everything we can to ensure you understand our advice.

EXECUTION ONLY
We prefer to conduct all our business on an advised basis, however, Execution Only may be your requirement and this means choosing a product that you prefer to use.  For execution only transactions, you will not have received advice from us on the suitability of that product or service; therefore, it is your responsibility to check all the details for its suitability and your eligibility. 

COMPLAINTS
Our aim is to provide you with a first-class professional and confidential service, however, should a complaint arise, you should contact us at our office address by post  to:-
McLean Kelly
P O Box 779
Richmond
Surrey
TW9 1TS
Telephone: 0800 916 9886
Email:  enquiries@mcleankelly.co.uk

Your letter will be acknowledged within 21 days following receipt of your letter or email and we will then ask for the full details concerning your complaint. Following receipt of this, we will do our best to resolve the complaint and will update you on the progress of your complaint. If you are still not satisfied, you may be entitled to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service who may be contacted at:-
Financial Ombudsman Service
South Quay Plaza
183 Marsh Wall
London
E14 9SR
Telephone: 0845 080 1800
Email:  enquiries@financial-ombudsman.org.uk

McLean Kelly is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) and our registration number is:  314183 which can be checked on the FSA’s website.  The FSA’s contact details are as follows:-
The Financial Services Authority
25 The North Colonnade
Canary Wharf
London
E15 5HS
Telephone: 020 7066 1000
Website: www.fsa.gov.uk

McLean Kelly is also a member of the following organisations:
Member of the Data Protection Act    Registration Number: Z8475774
Registered with the Consumer Credit Act   Registration Number: 562994

THINK VERY CAREFULLY BEFORE SECURING OTHER DEBTS AGAINST YOUR HOME.  YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE AND ANY LOAN SECURED AGAINST IT.