Mortgage exit fees - illegal?

[brian]

The BBC is running an article from one of their programs suggesting that Mortgage Exit fees are at best illegal, and at worst, a scam:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programme...ox/5112942.stm

Fees charged by mortgage lenders when customers pay back their loan have been branded potentially illegal and "a scandal" by industry insiders.

The so-called exit fees can be as much as £295 compared to no more than £50 10 years ago.

So customers who took out their mortgage some years ago can be shocked by the cost when they repay it.

One mortgage broker told the BBC the fees are a scandal and should not be more than £50, and a leading lawyer warned the charges could be illegal.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Money Box programme, lawyer Adam Samuel explained how the law worked: "It's not illegal if the customer was told that it would go up from £70 to £200 depending on when they redeemed their mortgage.

"What makes it illegal is if the lender can change that figure from £70 to £200 without either obtaining the customer's agreement or without using any objective standard by which to measure that amount."

I wasn't particularly aware of exit fees, but it obviously seems to be something I should try and keep an eye out for when going for a mortgage.

Anyone here had problems with exit fees with their lender??

[juol7]

No I haven't either, but thanks for the post. That would really help out a friend of mine.