Government causing homeowners to worry say CML

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by Kay Murchie

The government is at risk of causing customers to be alarmed by constantly criticising mortgage companies for irresponsible lending’, the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) warned.

Director General of the CML, Michael Coogan, said Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, is repeatedly criticising lenders and it is suggesting a lack of responsibility which is not helping the reputation of the financial services industry. He is creating an environment where customers could lose confidence and that is completely unnecessary.

Mr Coogan is urging the government to stop issuing downbeat messages that may cause homeowners to worry unnecessarily. He wrote to the Chancellor at the end of September requesting a meeting about this subject but has yet to receive a response.

Since the turmoil in the credit markets, mortgage providers have totally revised their loan offerings and are being very cautious who they lend to added Mr Coogan.

He concluded by saying the government should strengthen its support scheme for homeowners who get into debt as this number is going to increase as many fixed rate deals have expired which will result in a flurry of repossessions next year.