What Has Happened to Mike Blackburn’s Halifax?

Following the contest aural banking institutions in the UK in backward September 2008, Philip Suter of jml allowance looks aback at alive for Yorkshire based architecture societies who after became banks and what could appear to the HSBOS acreage agency alternation in the future.

In the aboriginal 1980’s Banks, Building Societies and some allowance companies started affairs up acreage agents throughout Britain. The cold was to accept a car to advertise their mortgage products. Building societies took advantage of the 1986 Building Societies Act which meant they could alter their activities into acreage agency, allotment affairs and off bank banking.

They invested heavily in this, authoritative a lot of acreage agents actual affluent overnight. In a lot of cases they bought the trading name. This would accept been actual able-bodied accepted in the bounded area, about organisations like Prudential Insurance and the Halifax Building Society anticipation barter would by itself use these acreage agents added if they took on the character of the ancestor company.

Philip Suter who now active jml-insurance.co.uk was active the residential absolution appointment for a close of agents with offices in south Bucks, west Middlesex and east Berks – Frank Farr and Sons and the agency was awash to the Leeds Permanent Building Society. Like added architecture societies the Leeds set up a bound aggregation to run it’s acreage agency arm. Their action about was not to abolish the trading names they had purchased. Some of these went aback to the 1800s like Frank Farr and Gale and Power.

As in 2008, because of the apartment bazaar and again abrogating disinterestedness problems abounding added acreage agents would accept gone out of business had they not had the architecture societies and banks abaft them.

The Leeds Permanent was run by Chief Executive Mike Blackburn who had ahead formed for Lloyds Bank and Philip Suter remembers affair him and audition him allege at a brace of agents meetings; he was a lot of absorbing appearance and baton of the business.

In 1993 he confused to the Halifax Building Society as Chief executive.

Two years after in August 1995, beneath Mike Blackburn’s administration the beyond Yorkshire based Halifax Building Society alloyed with the abate Yorkshire based Leeds Permanent Building Society.

Although portrayed as a “merger”, the Leeds name was anon phased out with new name accepting “the Halifax”. It was like a archetypal marriage, the benedict retained the name, whilst the abettor absent her one!.

Property Leeds UK Ltd became captivated into Halifax Estate Agents Ltd. Although some re-branding in the acreage agency names to Halifax took place, there are still names aural the Halifax Estate Agency arrangement that accept retained their aboriginal names including the close Philip Suter worked.

In 1997 beneath Mike Blackburn’s leadership, the association adapted to a Plc. Mike Blackburn retired from the Halifax the afterward year.

In 2001 Halifax Plc alloyed with the Bank of Scotland and became HBOS (Halifax Bank of Scotland) acceptable the fifth better banking casework aggregation in the UK.

All appears to accept gone able-bodied till 2008, they accept retained the acreage agency analysis although abundant abate than in the mid 1990’s and awash off the residential lettings business alone to alpha it up afresh a while later.

Unlike a lot of of the added above architecture societies and banks who accept pulled out of the acreage agency business the accomplished few years as they accept been able to advertise their mortgage and allowance articles after the costs of active acreage agents, the HBOS accumulation has kept theirs.

Now in October 2008, it looks actual acceptable HBOS will become allotment of Lloyds TSB and they will by itself be analytic at costs and casework and advertise off Halifax Estate Agents as they awash off their “Black Horse Agencies” and TSB Property Services abounding years ago. This will be the closing affiliate of the abundant acreage agency buyout from over twenty years ago.

There accept been a lot of changes in the banking industry in the endure twenty years or so and a lot added changes will appear in the next.

jml Insurance.co.uk is allotment of jml Property Services, the trading name of Jeffrey Milner Ltd. The aggregation is an UK based aggregation that was accustomed in 1979. jml allowance acts as an administrator for allowance companies affairs acreage allowance including HomeLet freeholder and addressee rental products, pet insurance, marriage insurance, motor insurance, insurance4carhire car appoint balance insurance, biking allowance and non accepted allowance products. They aswell accomplish jmlvillas.com an online business account for owners of anniversary home acreage to acquaint and are allotment of the jml Group that includes jml Training and Consultancy.