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MoneySavingExpert.com » Reclaim £1,000s » Mortgage Fees: Reclaim £100s if you've switched or repaid a mortgage

While every effort's been made to ensure this article's accuracy, it isn't intended to be seen as legal advice and no liability can be accepted for any claimants who rely on the info given.

Have you switched mortgage or paid it in full in the last few years? If so, it's likely you were overcharged by your old lender, possibly by £100s, and now officially can get this money back. This step-by-step guide will show you how to reclaim your cash in minutes.

It's all about 'mortgage exit fees', which you pay when closing a mortgage account (including shifting to a new lender). Sneakily some lenders have been charging people more than their contracts stated and, thankfully, in January '07, the regulator, the FSA announced if "past customers have paid a higher fee they can expect a refund of the difference". Yet if you don't ask, you don't get.

What is a Mortgage Exit Fee? Why you can get your money back? Step by step reclaiming guide Want to get more militant? What about my current mortgage? Related Articles/Discussion

They've left the gate open

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Pay off a mortgage and you'll be charged a fee, technically known as mortgage exit administration fee (MEAF). It's supposedly to cover staff, legal and admin costs e.g. changing the registration of the property at the Land Registry. MEAF's are known by a variety of other names including 'deed release fees', 'sealing fees', 'final administration fees', 'discharge fees' and 'final redemption fees'.

A MEAF is just one type of mortgage fee, don't get it confused

A MEAF is a very specific charge, and this ruling only applies to it; arrangement fees and other fees that are paid when you take a mortgage out are not part of this.

MEAF's are commonly confused with 'early repayment fees', also known as 'redemption penalties'. They're not the same thing, and this ruling doesn't apply to redemption penalties. To clarify:

• Early Redemption Penalties can't be reclaimed. These are charged when you repay or switch mortgage during a special deal, such as a fixed or discount rate (see the Mortgage Guide / Remortgage Guide for details).

• MEAFs can be reclaimed. These are always charged when you pay off or switch a mortgage, regardless of what your deal is. This means you can sometimes pay both a 'redemption penalty' and a MEAF.

MEAF costs have accelerated quicker than Richard Hammond. Ten years ago they cost around £60, but since then some have climbed to nearly £300.

In January '07 the FSA told lenders they must justify these increases; and noted many lenders were charging people much more than it stated in their original contracts. Lenders' excuse was the contracts contained clauses allowing them to "vary the fee over time", but the FSA said as the term can be varied without the consumer agreeing, this falls foul of the unfair contract laws.

Lenders were given until the end of February '07 to decide on what action they'd take for past and current customers, and in most cases they simply agreed to refund customers the difference. Over 100,000 people have been through the reclaiming process via this site alone.

Why have lenders increased MEAFs so much?

I believe it's part of an increasing attempt to gemmy the competitive mortgage market. As many best buy tables work on the 'lowest interest rates', lenders have deliberately kept rates low, but increased fees to pay for it; so they look cheap, even when they're not. Yet it now turns out, with MEAFs anyway, this simply isn't allowed.

As well as MEAFs, the same's true with application fees among others, which a few years ago were typically £300, but are now often £600 - £1,000. For this reason you should be very careful when choosing a mortgage (see the mortgage or remortgage guides).

All major lenders seem to be offering past customers a refund of some or all of the difference between what their contract stated the MEAF would be and the actual charge. This makes the reclaim process really simple, and all you need do is write a template letter or make a five minute phone call, asking for your money back.

Some lenders will also give you interest on top of your money. If you want to ask for the interest, and your lender isn't giving it automatically, then use this sample template letter (right click to save the file), though the interest isn't likely to be too huge (for example 8% interest on £100 over 5 years is £40).

If in doubt just call ‘em up

Even if you don’t have a clue about what you were charged, reclaiming should be pretty easy. Just call your old lender and say “I’d like to reclaim my old mortgage exit fee please”. When it asked for details say you don’t have them, and ask it to let you know what you were charged and what your contract says. Most will do this without a problem. If it asks you why you want to reclaim, just say “because the regulator, the FSA says I was overcharged”.The table of lenders below is a guide to past MEAF rates, so you can work out roughly how much you'll get back.

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Mortgage Exit Fees: Lender by Lender information This information is from a variety of sources, including direct contact, MoneySavers forum feedback, Moneyfacts and other sources.
Lender	Jan 07	Now (if changed)	5 yrs ago	10 yrs ago	How to Reclaim	Will it pay interest too?
A&L	295	-	150	90	Mightn't offer the entire difference as fee structure was changed in Jan 04. Call 0870 901 1001 or write to Mortgage Customer Relations, Alliance & Leicester plc, Carlton Park, Narborough, Leicester LE19 0AL to find out about your specific case.	No
Abbey	225	0 but introducing a 225 ‘mortgage account fee‘	85	50	Call 0845 716 5905 or write to Abbey, Cr Team, PO BOX 286, Stockton on Tees, TS17 6QQ.	No
Barclays / Woolwich	275	-	95	50	Contact on dedicated telephone no 0800 0234180 .	Yes at 4%
Bradford and Bingley	235	-	tbc	tbc	Would like people to write to Customer Relations, PO Box 2, Main Street, Bingley, West Yorkshire, BD16 2LW.	No
Bristol & West	195	0 but introducing a 195 ‘core term fee‘	150	50 (plus 10 days interest + 37.50 deeds release)	Contact at Customer Relations Mortgages, Bristol & West Plc, One Temple Quay, Bristol, BS99 7AX or standard customer services telephone number.	No
Britannia	75 for each sub a/c	Max 125	50	50	Call 01538 392700 or write to Customer Feedback Centre (C097), Britannia Building Society, Newton House, Leek, Staffordshire, Moorlands, ST13 5RG	No
Cheltenham & Gloucester / Lloyds	225	0	50	35	Call 0845 6031637 or write to Cheltenham & Gloucester, Chief Office, Barnett Way, Gloucester GL4 3RL	Yes, at 6.25%
Clydesdale Bank / Yorkshire Bank	195	-	None	None	Write to the branch where you held your account or Customer Relations - Wealth & Mortgages, Level 4, Box 25, 40 St Vincent Place, Glasgow, G1 2HL.	No
Coventry BS	195 (inc deeds fee)	125	55 + 40 deeds fee	55 + 40 deeds fee	Would prefer people to write to Customer Relations, Oakfield House, Binley Business Park, Coventry, CV3 9YR or can phone 0845 7665522.	No
Dunfermline BS	199	-	75	50	Have stated that their "costs are justified" so may not make a refund, but that any complaints will be looked at on a case by case basis so call on 0845 6012218 or write to Dunfermline Building Society, Caledonia House, Carnegie Avenue, Dunfermline, KY11 8PJ.	No
Halifax	225 (inc. deeds release)	0	125	55	Contact on dedicated telephone no 08451 203033 and may be sent a form to complete.	No
HSBC	None	-	None	None	Doesn't charge an exit fee - so no need to do anything!	No
Kent Reliance BS	225	150	tbc	tbc	Call 0845 122 0033 or write to standard customer services address.	No
Nationwide BS	90	-	0	67	Would like people to write to Mortgage Operations, Nationwide, Kings Park Road, Moulton Park, Northampton NN3 6NW.	No
Natwest / Royal Bank of Scotland	225	0	85 / 75	65 / 80	Call 0845 3020190 (Natwest) or 0845 7212600 (RBS) or write to Mortgage Operations, PO Box 19505, Greenock, PA15 1EF	No
Northern Rock	250	0	150	75	Has £15 million set aside to pay claims. Wants people to write to Customer Support, Northern Rock PLC, Northern Rock House, Regent Centre, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE3 4PL, and include a contact telephone no. If a refund is due they will ask you to sign a declaration form.	No
Portman BS	195	145	tbc	55	Would like people to write to Portman BS, Portman House, Richmond Hill, Bournemouth, BH2 6EP.	No
Skipton BS	175	125	75	tbc	Call 0845 8501700 or write to Customer Relations, Skipton BS, The Bailey, Skipton, BD23 1DN.	No
Standard Life	200	0	150	0	Write to Standard Life Bank, Customer Relations Team, Dundas House, 20 Brandon Street, Edinburgh, EH3 5PP	No
West Bromwich BS	300	200	tbc	tbc	Would like people to write to West Bromwich Building Society, Customer Care Team, 374 High Street, West Bromwich, B70 8LR.	No
Yorkshire BS	199