The Intermediary – October 2026 - Flipbook - Page 83
T E C H N O L O GY
Opinion
The case for AI
in lender-broker
relationships
W
ould it bother
you if a useful
update from
your lender
had been
draed with
artificial intelligence (AI)?
If it arrived promptly, explained
where the case stood and made clear
what was needed next, I suspect the
more pressing concern would be
geing on with the job.
In specialist finance, we talk a great
deal about relationships. I believe
AI can strengthen them by making
everyday communication less timeconsuming for both parties.
A broker should still be able to pick
up the phone and discuss a case. They
should also be able to get through the
day without chasing information that
could already have been provided.
Good communication
Pegasus Insight’s analysis of specialist
mortgage lender recommendations,
covering Q2 2025 to Q1 2026, ranked
speed of initial decision first and
certainty and consistency of decisions
second. Clear communication
about case packaging requirements
and access to underwriters ranked
fourth and fih.
These findings concern wider lender
service, but they give us a sensible
starting point for AI: help brokers get
information they can act on, while
preserving access to the people who
can discuss it.
That access maers because the
full picture about a case does not
always emerge in an enquiry form or
online calculator.
A conversation about the borrower’s
circumstances or proposed exit
may reveal a funding option worth
exploring. However efficiently a
lender communicates, there must
be room for that discussion. Equally,
personal service should not require
every routine update to be wrien
from scratch.
From a lender marketing
perspective, I would argue that being
dependable is as much a part of the
relationship as being personable.
Saving on both sides
Some of this is already achievable
through ordinary automation. A
CRM can acknowledge an enquiry
or send a message when a case
reaches a milestone. We should be
clear about that when discussing
AI’s contribution.
AI offers a further possibility
where preparing an update involves
interpreting information spread
across a case.
Aer several emails and a
phone call, it could draw on the
correspondence, call transcript
and current case record to dra a
summary of progress, outstanding
items and agreed actions. The
relationship manager would check it
before sharing it with the broker.
That benefit depends on the
information being current; AI
cannot fill a gap le by an unrecorded
conversation or decision.
The lender could spend less time
gathering information and composing
the message. The broker could spend
less time chasing or piecing together
the position from previous exchanges.
A clear account of what is outstanding
also makes it easier to explain the
situation to the client.
Those savings belong to each party.
The lender might use the time to assess
another proposal; the broker might
use it to advise a client or develop
new business. Both benefit from
making the administration around a
case less demanding.
SAV PROCOPIOU
is senior marketing manager
at LendHub
Trust in the lender
Of course, an update that needs
correcting can create more work than
it saves. AI may miss a qualification or
describe a proposed change as though
it has been agreed. Someone who
understands the case must check the
output against the source information,
and the broker must know who can
explain or correct it.
Confidentiality deserves the same
aention. Lenders need to understand
where case information is processed,
how long it is retained and whether a
provider uses it for training.
Access and sharing must be
controlled: an internal credit note
should not appear in a broker update
simply because both relate to the same
case. Security monitoring and a plan
for breaches are also necessary.
These responsibilities remain with
the lender. A broker’s confidence in an
update depends on knowing the lender
stands behind it, whatever helped
produce the words.
That is why I would judge AI in
case communication by the work it
removes for everyone involved. Does
the broker understand the position
sooner? Does the lender spend less
time reconstructing it? Are fewer
follow-up emails needed to establish
what happens next?
A lender saving five minutes on
a message that takes the broker ten
minutes to decipher has achieved very
lile. The opportunity is to make
doing business together easier, while
keeping a knowledgeable person
within reach when the case needs
discussion. That is a worthwhile
contribution to a relationship,
whether or not AI wrote the update. ●
October 2026 | The Intermediary
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