- Making your payment
- Making overpayments
- Paying your mortgage in full
- Making changes
- Third party authority
- Credit file reporting
- Support for when someone dies
- Changing repayment type
Making your payment
We want making payments to be as pain-free as possible so we have a variety of options available. You can choose the one that best suits your needs.
Your payment needs to reach us by the end of the month.
Please check how long it takes for payments to reach us by your chosen method as they do vary.
Important
If you pay by Bank Transfer, any payments made after 5.30pm will be treated as being received the next working day. This is in line with standard banking procedure.
If we don’t receive your payment in the month that it’s due, this will create a payment shortfall or any existing payment shortfall may increase. If your account is in payment shortfall, you’ll be charged more interest. This is because your balance will be higher than expected. Every month we also tell the credit reference agencies about how you’re managing your mortgage.
Payment methods
A Direct Debit is an easy and convenient way to make your payments. It means you don’t have to worry about forgetting to make your payment and if your payment amount changes, we’ll automatically update the Direct Debit so it collects the right amount. We’ll always write to you in advance to tell you that we’re going to do this.
To set up a Direct debit you can either:
- Call our Customer Services team on 01252 812 271 (Option 6) and we can do it over the phone. All you need is your sort code, account number and the authority to set up payments from the account.
- Request we post a copy to you to complete and return to us at: CHL Mortgages, Admiral House, Harlington Way, Fleet, GU51 4YA.
You should allow 8 working days for us to set up a new Direct Debit. If your next payment is due before then, you should make it in a different way. We’ll send you a letter to tell you when we’ve set your Direct Debit up.
Things you should know
- Your payments are protected by the Direct Debit guarantee.
- If your Direct Debit is rejected by your bank, we’ll add a fee to your account. This is to cover the cost of dealing with this and the current amount of this fee is shown in our Tariff of Mortgage Charges. We won’t charge this fee more than once in a month. If you can’t make the payment or want to pay a different way, you should contact us straight away.
A bank transfer is a single payment set up through your bank. You can set one up online, in branch or over the phone. You choose when and how much you pay.
If you’d like to pay by bank transfer, please give us a call on 01252 812 271 (Option 6). Or you can email us at [email protected].
Things you should know
- Payments received will be applied to your account the following working day.
We have two ways you can pay using your debit card:
- Use our automated payment line by calling 01252 812 271 (Option 1). This is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
- Speak to one of our team on 01252 812 271 (Option 6). Phone lines are open between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.
Things you should know
- Our automated payment line is only available to account holders.
- You can pay your monthly payment amount using the automated payment line. Unless you’ve got an agreed arrangement with us you’ll need to call us and speak to one of our team if you want to pay more than this.
- You’ll need your account number, date of birth, payment amount and the numbers from the security property’s postcode to use this service.
- Payments will be applied to your account the following working day.
- If you have more than one account with us, you’ll need to make separate payments on the automated payment line for each one.
Standing orders are automatic, regular payments set up through your bank. You can set one up to make your monthly payment online, in branch or over the phone. You choose when to pay and can change or cancel it at any time. If your monthly payment changes, you’ll need to change your standing order with your bank.
If you’d like to pay by standing order, please give us a call on 01252 812 271 (Option 6). Or you can email us at [email protected].
Phone lines are open between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.
Things you should know
- Payments can take up to five days to reach us and are only received on weekdays (excluding bank holidays).
- You’re in control of your standing order. If your monthly payment amount changes, you’ll need to change the amount of your standing order through your bank. If you don’t do this, you could end up paying too much or too little.
- If you no longer want to pay by standing order, you’ll need to cancel it with your bank. If you don’t do this, your bank will continue to send us the agreed amount (as long as there’s enough money in your bank account).
Making overpayments
An overpayment is an extra amount you choose to pay on top of your normal monthly payment. Overpaying means you can save money on the interest you pay by reducing the outstanding mortgage balance. If you have an interest only mortgage, it can also help reduce the amount you need to pay back at the end of the term.
You can make a regular overpayment each month, a monthly overpayment, or a lump sum overpayment where you make a one-off overpayment. Lump sum overpayments are also known as capital repayments.
Things you should know
- You should only overpay if you can afford to do so. If you’re unsure whether overpaying is right for you, you may wish to seek independent financial advice to help you with your decision.
- You won’t be able to ‘borrow back’ any overpayments or use them to cover future monthly payments. If you have a flexible account, there may be the option to drawdown on the available credit, subject to current criteria.
- You can check whether any early repayment charges apply by looking at your mortgage offer or speaking to us.
- If you make a lump sum overpayment this won’t cover your normal monthly payment, unless you contact us to request this.
- If you have any outstanding payment shortfall, we’ll use the overpayment to clear these first before clearing any fee balance outstanding. If there are no outstanding payment shortfall or fee balance, we’ll use the overpayment to reduce the outstanding capital balance. If you want your overpayment to be applied in a different way, you should tell us before you make the payment.
- We can only accept payments made from a named account holder.
- As part of our due diligence checks we may ask you to provide details of where the money is coming from.
- If you have an interest only mortgage, overpaying might not pay back the full amount you owe by the end of the term. We recommend that you review your repayment plans at least once a year.
- If you pay by Direct Debit, you can set up a regular monthly overpayment by calling us on 01252 812 271 (Option 6). Phone lines are open between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays
- Make an overpayment by debit card by calling our Customer Services team on 01252 812 271 (Option 6). Phone lines are open between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.
- Update your standing order payment to reflect the amount we’ve agreed with you.
- Make a bank transfer of the agreed amount.
We may ask for documents to show where the money’s coming from. If this applies, we’ll talk you through what’s needed and why before you make the payment.
Paying off your mortgage in full
You can pay off your mortgage in full at any time. This is known as redeeming your mortgage.
We’ll let you know if any charges apply to pay off your mortgage early. Your final settlement figure could include any early repayment charges that apply (as shown in your mortgage offer) and, a Mortgage Exit Administration Fee of up to £90 which covers the work needed to close the mortgage account. If we hold your deeds then we may also charge you a fee to release these. These costs will need to be paid before the charge can be released.
There may also be an administration fee for releasing the charge if the property is in Scotland or Northern Ireland. You can find out what you need to pay by calling us on 01252 812 271 (Option 6). Phone lines are open between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.
Find out how much you owe
You can do this by requesting a redemption statement. This will tell you exactly how much you need to pay including any interest and fees, such as the Mortgage Exit Administration Fee. It will also tell you how to make the final payment. If you’re not using a solicitor to pay off your mortgage, we may ask you questions about where the money came from. This is to meet our regulatory obligations.
We aim to send out all redemption statements within five working days of receiving a request, but it can take up to 10 working days. If you need it sooner, you should call us and let us know.
- Asking your solicitor to request one. They’ll need to confirm they’re acting for you
- Calling us on 01252 812 271 (Option 6). Phone lines are open between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.
- Writing to us at: CHL Mortgages, Admiral House, Harlington Way, Fleet, GU51 4YA.
You’ll need to tell us what date you intend to pay off your mortgage so we can calculate the amount you’ll owe on that date. The statement will confirm how much extra you’ll need to add each day if you pay it off any later. You can do this for up to 14 days. After this you’ll need to ask us for a new statement.
Don’t cancel your Direct Debit until we’ve confirmed the account has been settled. We’ll let you know if there are any outstanding monies that need to be cleared before we can release our charge.
Once we’ve received your payment
We’ll let you know if the payment received isn’t enough to clear the mortgage balance outstanding, as this needs to be cleared before we can release our charge.
Once your mortgage has been paid in full, we’ll get it settled and closed down including releasing our charge over the property. If you’ve paid too much, we’ll send this money back to you. Don’t forget to give us your new address if you’ve moved house. We’ll then write to you to let you know that you’ve paid off your mortgage. Most title deeds are held electronically now, but if we hold your title deeds, we’ll send these back to you (or your solicitor, if you have one acting for you).
Worried about your mortgage payments?
If you’re thinking about paying off your mortgage because you’re finding it difficult to make your payments, we might be able to help.
Call us on 03330 148 048. Phone lines are open between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays. Or if you don’t feel up to speaking to us, there are lots of other places to go for help. Check out our Independent Support section for details of the debt advice organisations that we work closely with who can provide free help and support with your finances.
Cross consolidation
If you have more than one mortgage with us, it’s sometimes necessary for us to cross-consolidate. This means requesting extra available funds when you are redeeming one account. We will use the money to clear the mortgage on that property and then apply any extra monies to one or more of the other mortgages in your portfolio.
We only do this in certain circumstances, for example where another property in the portfolio is in negative equity (where the mortgage is more than the value of the property). If this applies to your portfolio, it will be discussed with you or your solicitor in advance of paying off the mortgage.
Making changes
We’re here to help
Over the lifetime of your mortgage, many things may change – here’s how to deal with the most common changes.
If you’d like to talk to us about any other changes to your account, please call us on 01252 812 271 (Option 6).
Phone lines are open between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.
Giving someone third party authority
This allows someone else to talk to us about your account without you being there.
You may find this helpful if you need some help managing your finances or find it difficult to speak to us about your situation. If you’re unwell, or your circumstances mean you can’t call us, you may find it reassuring to know someone else can do this for you.
- Print off the third-party authority form.
- Call us on 01252 812 271 (Option 6) and we’ll post a form out to you
Here’s a step-by-step guide below to help you complete the third party authority form and let you know what your third party can do.
Your third party can give and receive information about your account. They can’t make changes to the account or make payments.
Step 1
Complete and return the form
Download and fully complete the third party authority form. Make sure it’s signed by both you and your third-party and send it back to us at: CHL Mortgages, Admiral House, Harlington Way, Fleet, GU51 4YA.
Step 2
We’ll write to you
To let you know that the third-party(ies) has/have been added to your account. The authority will continue until you tell us that you don’t need it anymore. You should let your third-party know it’s in place as we won’t tell them.
Things you should know
- Adding a third-party to your account doesn’t change your agreement with us. This means it won’t make them responsible for your debt or give them an interest in your property.
- The third-party authority will remain on the account until you tell us it’s no longer needed.
- If your chosen third party would like more information about how their personal information is used, they can look at our Privacy Policy.
- You may want or need someone to be able to have more control over your account than a third-party authority allows. This may be due to your health, or not being in a position to make decisions for yourself. If this is the case, you’d need to apply for a Power of Attorney. You can do this yourself or get a solicitor to handle the application for you. For more information, or to check whether this may be the best option for you, you can visit: www.gov.uk/power-of-attorney.
Credit file reporting
Every month we provide information to the credit reference agencies about how you’re managing your mortgage. The credit reference agencies use this information to create your credit file.
Here’s some useful information to help you understand what goes into your credit file, what it means, how to obtain a copy of it and where to go for more information.
Support for when someone dies
We’re here to help
We understand that losing someone close to you can be very difficult and there’s lots of things to take care of. We’re here to help you through this difficult time by making the process of dealing with the mortgage as simple as possible.
Tell us about the death
- Calling us on 01252 812 271 (Option 6).
Phone lines are open between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays. - Writing to us at: CHL Mortgages, Admiral House, Harlington Way, Fleet, GU51 4YA.
What we need to know:
- Name and address of the account holder who has died
- The mortgage account number
- The date of death
- A certified copy of the death certificate
- Your details
- Whether you will be dealing with the estate or if there is a solicitor helping
The next step depends on whether the mortgage is in sole or joint names.
Sole borrowers
If the borrower left a will, you’ll need to provide a certified copy of the Grant of Probate so we can record the details of the executor(s) on our records and speak to them. If the borrower died without leaving a will, we’ll need a certified copy of the Grant of Letters of Administration.
The mortgage will need to be repaid.
Joint borrowers
If the borrower who died left a will, you’ll need to provide a certified copy of the Grant of Probate so we can record the details of the executor(s) on our records and speak to them. If the borrower died without leaving a will, we’ll need to a certified copy of the Grant of Letters of Administration.
If you’re the remaining borrower and you’re worried about how you’ll afford to make your mortgage payments, we can help. Please call us on 03330 148 048. Phone lines are open between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.
Ownership of the property will depend on whether the property was held as:
-
Joint tenants in England & Wales / Full Owners in Northern Ireland
The deceased borrower’s interest will automatically transfer to the remaining borrower(s).
After we receive the death certificate, we’ll remove the deceased borrower’s name from the mortgage. This means that the remaining borrower is then solely responsible for repaying the mortgage.
-
Tenants in common in England & Wales
Each borrower owns a specific share in the property and the deceased borrower’s share won’t automatically transfer to the remaining borrower(s). If the property was owned this way, you’ll need the help of a solicitor to deal with the deceased borrower’s share of the estate. We will not remove the estate from the mortgage.
-
Limited company mortgage accounts (Buy-to-Let)
Where the account is in the name of a limited company, we’ll need to understand who the deceased party’s shares are being transferred to. We’ll also need to know if there are any new Directors/shareholders. We’ll talk you through what this means and what information or documentation may be needed.
Important Information
- We’ll continue to charge interest on the mortgage balance until it’s been paid back in full, but we may allow a period of reduced interest for homeloans (where the mortgage was for the deceased borrower’s home). Talk to us about the options available.
- Payments are still due on the mortgage, even after a borrower has passed away.
Changing repayment type
Changing to repayment
If you have an interest only mortgage – or part of it is interest only – you can change to a capital repayment mortgage. That means you’ll start to pay off the capital you’ve borrowed as well as the interest. If you move your whole mortgage to capital repayment, you maintain all future payments and you don’t have any outstanding fees, you will have paid it off in full by the end of the term.
What to expect when changing your repayment type
- Changing your mortgage to capital repayment can have a big impact on your financial situation. You need to be sure you’ll be able to afford the higher monthly payments
- When you apply, we’ll do some affordability checks and request documentation to make sure that it won’t put too much strain on your finances.
- We can’t provide any financial or mortgage advice, so if you’re unsure of the best option for you then we’d recommend speaking to an independent financial or mortgage advisor.
- We’ll let you know the outcome of the checks. If your application is approved, we’ll send you an acceptance letter to sign and return. Once received we’ll change your repayment type.
- There is a fee to change your repayment type, which is listed in our Tariff of Mortgage Charges.
There are some criteria you’ll need to meet for us to be able to agree the change. These are:
If you’re looking to change from repayment to interest only because you’re worried about making your current payments please see our Money Worries section.