The Intermediary – March 2026 - Flipbook - Page 33
T H E I N T E RV I E W
Santander
wider market, our ability to fund, and a lot of
other factors.”
The consequence, he says, was that brokers
gradually began placing more cases elsewhere.
“In that time, brokers got out of the habit of
using us and started using other lenders more,”
Sellar says. “In the intermediary market, it is
very much [the case that] if you stop being
used a lot by the brokers, they do often forget
about why they used you in the past.”
It was against that backdrop that Santander
introduced its Broker Pledge in early 2025,
to send a clear signal to the market that it
intended to re-engage with intermediary
distribution. The pledge included commitments
around pricing transparency and product
change communication, including a promise
not to operate dual pricing between direct and
intermediary channels and to provide at least
24 hours’ notice before product withdrawals.
Sellar explains: “We brought in the pledges
last year, in February 2025, and that was about
making a statement to the market that we
want to lend, and we want to help the brokers
with their customers [...] We also aimed to put
the brokers at the heart of product transfers.”
He adds: “These pledges all went very well,
and we worked very hard with the brokers to
explain what they meant, while still showing
our commitment.”
Coming into 2026, Santander chose not only
to maintain those commitments but to expand
them further.
Sellar says: “We wanted to renew those
pledges, so the brokers knew that it wasn’t just
a one-off event. We wanted to continue with
the 24 hours’ notice, which is very important at
the moment. We also wanted to showcase the
fact we’re not dual pricing, which gives them
the confidence to be able to speak to their
customers, and that we’ve got the best rate
for them.”
Santander has now added a fourth pledge,
Sellar explains: “This time around, we added
the access to the underwriter pledge. The
reason for that is because, in a world where
cases get more and more complex, clear access
to the decision maker is very, very important.”
the broker asking them to explain something,”
Sellar says.
Under the new approach, Sellar
says underwriters are encouraged to
contact brokers directly to resolve
straightforward queries.
He adds: “Now the underwriter will pick
up the phone and call the broker. They might
ask, ‘What is this on your client’s payslip?’
And the broker will be able to clarify quickly,
whether it’s a gym membership or a union fee
for example.”
With the clarification provided instantly,
the underwriter can then move straight to a
decision without formally suspending the case.
Sellar notes: “The query is answered on the
phone there and then. The case is then agreed
with no further touch. Ultimately, that means
quicker decisions and a more seamless process
for both the broker and the customer.”
One challenge the lender is still working to
address relates to call connectivity, as many
outbound calls from banking systems appear as
withheld numbers.
Sellar explains: “At the moment, we only
connect to about 50% of our calls going out
because when you ring out from a bank,
it still says private call or call ID blocked.
We’re encouraging brokers to save our phone
number so that when we call it shows as a
Santander underwriter.”
Alongside outbound calls, Santander has
also introduced a dedicated underwriting team
that brokers can contact directly through the
lender’s existing support lines.
He says: “We’ve got a team where if a certain
case needs looking over with an underwriter,
the broker can ring up our normal business
teams, and if they want to speak to the
underwriter we can put them through.”
This allows brokers to discuss new cases,
ongoing applications or complex scenarios with
decision-makers earlier in the process.
Sellar notes: “This access allows our broker
community to be more proactive with us, as
we continue to look for ways to make quicker
decisions and quicker offers.”
Rethinking underwriting
Another recent development from Santander
has been the launch of ‘My First Mortgage’ – its
98% LTV mortgage, designed to support firsttime buyers with smaller deposits.
For Sellar, the initiative also represents a
return to the lender’s historical roots.
He says: “If you go right back to my Abbey
National days, it was primarily seen as a firsttime buyer lender.” →
The new pledge addresses a longstanding
broker frustration with larger lending
organisations, where communication between
brokers and underwriters can sometimes
become indirect and time-consuming.
Traditionally, when underwriters identified
an issue within an application, “the case would
be pended, and a message would be sent to
Re-engaging first-time buyers
March 2026 | The Intermediary
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