COVID-19 operational update from Stuart Wilson (Air Group)

25 March 2020

Operational update from Stuart Wilson, CEO of Air Group – the collective of companies covering a range of retirement and later life services:

“At the moment, we are very much carrying on with ‘business as usual’ albeit under these exceptionally unusual circumstances. We are all still finding our feet in this new ‘socially distant’ world and, while it’s a challenge, it’s also remarkable how quickly our industry has been able to adapt.

“I’ve talked to a lots of Air Group members in recent days, and I know that as they’ve adjusted their own sales processes to meet the demands of social distancing and isolation, many are concerned about what happens next with regards to crucial aspects of the lifetime mortgage application process – namely valuations and conveyancing.

“These processes rely on both the valuer and lawyer meeting a client face-to-face and/or entering their home; given the most recent control measures announced by the Government, that is now all but impossible, especially for conveyancing which (among other things) requires the mortgage deed signature to be witnessed.

“Air Group has the interests of its members at the top of our list and we’re in daily contact with lenders to get updates on how they, and the connected parties to this process, intend to navigate through this issue. There are innovative solutions being discussed and we expect to be able to provide members with some good news on this over the course of the next few days.

“We will communicate again with members on these points, including how we are moving forward with them, shortly and we are urging members to get in touch with us if they need help or if they have any further questions.”