The UK’s six biggest lenders’ share of the mortgage market has fallen.

Last year, it was 72%, down from 76% in 2012, the Council of Mortgage Lenders reported yesterday.

The figure compares with the big six’s 61% market share in 2006, before the financial crash.

However, the crash took out many smaller lenders, increasing the dominance of the six largest who, by 2009, undertook 86% of all lending.

The biggest lenders last year were Lloyds, followed by Nationwide building society, Santander, Barclays, HSBC, Royal Bank of Scotland, Yorkshire building society, Coventry building society, Virgin Money and Clydesdale Bank.

Skipton building society, which owns the Connells Group, was the 11th largest mortgage lender.

Lending by smaller firms – those outside the top 20 – represented 8% market share, compared with under 1% just two years previously in 2011.