Gallagher’s reinsurance division, Gallagher Re, has joined the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association (Imla) as an associate member, taking total membership at the trade body to 60.

Managing partner for mortgage indemnity reinsurance, Steven Rance, has been appointed Imla representative for the firm.

Rance has previously worked with the body on the Deposit Unlock scheme, which enables FTBs and homeowners to purchase a new-build with a 5% deposit.

Imla now represents 90% of the UK’s largest mortgage lenders by gross lending.

In January, Danske Bank UK joined, prior to which Hampshire Trust bank (HTB) also became a member.

According to IMLA’s Mortgage Market Tracker, the average caseload volumes for intermediaries climbed to their highest levels yet in the fourth quarter of 2021.