Terms of Business

About us

Rockgate Capital Ltd is an Appointed Representative (AR) of Connect IFA Ltd, 39 Station Lane, Hornchurch, RM12 6JL, who are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Connect IFA Ltd's firm reference number is 441505. Most Business Buy to Let mortgages are not regulated by the FCA. You can check our details on the FCA's register at register.fca.org.uk or by contacting the FCA on 0800 111 6768.

The FCA is the independent watchdog that regulates financial services. Use this document to decide if our services are right for you. It explains the service(s) we offer and how you will pay for them. Our permitted business includes advising on and arranging mortgages, as follows:

• We are not limited in the range of mortgage products we will consider for you in relation to regulated 1st charge and 2nd charge loans raised for personal or business purposes.
• We will consider remortgages, further advances, 2nd charge loans and unsecured loan options if you wish to increase your borrowing on an existing property.
• We offer a comprehensive range of mortgages from lenders across the market, but not deals you can only obtain by going direct to a lender.
• We can arrange other finance such as Business Buy to Let mortgages, Commercial and Development Finance, and Bridging Finance.
• We offer advice on the regulated products we recommend. In some circumstances we may refer you to another party to provide the advice and recommendation where it is appropriate to do so.

Our services and fees

Initial evaluation stage — no charge. We will consider your financial circumstances and requirements, then provide you with information on the most competitive lender and product options suited to you. We will provide an Illustration or ESIS document (European Standardised Information Sheet) setting out in writing all the features and costs of any mortgage or loan we recommend, and arrange an initial decision in principle with the recommended lender.

Processing stage. On receipt of your instruction to proceed, we will complete the application and submit it to the lender on your behalf, monitor its progress, and keep you updated until the lender issues a formal loan offer.

Mortgage offer stage. There will be a fee for arranging your mortgage; the precise amount depends on your circumstances, and we estimate it to be £999 for straightforward cases. This fee becomes payable once we have successfully secured your mortgage offer from the lender. For more complex cases — including portfolio landlords and complex shareholding structures — we will confirm a different fee in writing before you proceed with an application.

Where we recommend a product from a lender who wishes to deal directly with you, or you choose to deal directly with a lender we have recommended, our fee as described above still applies.

Commission disclosure

We are a credit broker and not a lender. We have access to an extensive range of lenders. Once we have assessed your needs, we will recommend a lender(s) that provides suitable products to meet your personal circumstances and requirements, though you are not obliged to take our advice or recommendation. Whichever lender we introduce you to, we will typically receive commission from them after completion of the transaction. The amount of commission we receive will normally be a fixed percentage of the amount you borrow from the lender. Commission paid to us may vary in amount depending on the lender and product. The lenders we work with pay commission at different rates. However, the amount of commission that we receive from a lender does not have an effect on the amount that you pay to that lender under your credit agreement.

Marketing

We would like to keep in touch with you from time to time about products and services that may be of interest to you, such as new lender launches, criteria changes and general market updates. We will only do this with your prior, express consent, which we will ask for separately and which you may withdraw at any time. If you do not consent, we will still contact you in relation to any application you have asked us to arrange, and Connect IFA Ltd may still contact you to obtain feedback on our service.

Our ethical policy

We aim to provide the highest standard of advice and service possible. The interests of our customers are paramount to us, and to achieve this we will:

• Be open, honest and transparent in the way we deal with you.
• Not place our interests above yours.
• Communicate clearly, promptly and without jargon.
• Obtain feedback from you to help identify any improvements required.

Payment and refund of fees

We offer the facility to pay our fees by direct bank transfer or by debit or credit card. We will only use card details to process payments due to the lender, surveyor or other third party as required to process your application, as detailed in the mortgage illustration. We reserve the right to charge interest at 8% per annum on any amounts due to us that remain unpaid after the due date.

Please note that fees are not refundable.

Termination

The authority to act on your behalf may be terminated at any time without penalty by either party giving 7 days' notice in writing to the other, but without prejudice to the completion of transactions already initiated. Any transactions effected before termination, and a due proportion of any period charges for services, shall be settled to that date.

We shall not be in breach of this agreement, and shall not incur any liability to you, if there is any failure to perform our duties due to circumstances reasonably beyond our control.

Restrictions and legal jurisdiction

Please be aware that the FCA does not regulate all the mortgages and property finance we are able to arrange — for example, the FCA do not normally regulate Business Buy to Let mortgages. We are committed to providing the same high standards even when dealing with your requirements for non-regulated products.

This agreement is governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales, and any dispute is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

Complaints

Details of what to do if you wish to complain about our advice or service are set out on our Complaints page.

Are we covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS)?

We are covered by the FSCS. You may be entitled to compensation from the scheme if we cannot meet our obligations — this depends on the type of business and the circumstances of the claim. Mortgage advising and arranging is covered up to a maximum limit of £85,000. Further information about the compensation scheme is available from the FSCS.

Data protection

We take the security of your personal data seriously. Please review our Privacy Policy. We also recommend you view the privacy notice of lenders or providers we recommend to you, available at connectbrokers.co.uk/lenderprivacy. Please note that phone calls may be recorded.