It’s approaching a year now since HM Land Registry announced that it will accept witnessed electronic signatures. The decision to accept electronic signatures was made after feedback from across the sector. But 10 months on, are they being utilised by conveyancers? Are we even giving this as an option to our clients? And if not, why not?
As a property solicitor, I feel that we have been calling for so much change in the residential conveyancing sector. However, more often than not when we do achieve change we stop and become cautious of the change we have been looking for. Conveyancing is a high-risk area that requires a huge amount of compliance so it understandable that each change needs to be risk-assessed and implemented correctly. But it also shouldn’t stop us from moving forward positively.
Witnessed electronic signatures give us flexibility in what we can offer clients, provides us with quick solutions when a speedy turnaround time is required and means we can work towards a more paperless industry.
The Prosperity Law property team has embraced the new platforms that are available and allows us to offer Land Registry compliant signatures to our clients. The Land Registry Practice Guide 8 is clear on the steps that need to be taken by all parties. As a conveyancer, we must ensure the rules governing witnessed electronic signatures are strictly followed and as it currently stands this involves providing a Conveyancer Certificate – declaring that this has been done to the best of our knowledge.
This in itself can be a scary prospect for a conveyancer to certify, but it isn’t much different to how we would deal with the signing of deeds using wet signatures. We already advise the client on the correct method for signing the deed for it to be valid. We can adopt similar methods for advising our clients when adopting the use of electronic signatures, to ensure the correct steps are taken.
Most platforms, which have developed Land Registry compliant signatures, are set up so each stage of the signing process is carried out before the next stage can be completed. This should also offer peace of mind to the conveyancer that the correct steps are being taken for the deed to be valid.
What’s more, the Land Registry has worked closely with companies to ensure they are adapting their technology and methods to meet the needs of the Land Registry; not the other way around. This means there is also a two-factor authentication requirement and gives conveyancers added comfort.
Nearly a year later and the Land Registry is exploring qualified electronic signatures which could even remove the need for a witness! This move towards a more digital conveyancing world is something we at Prosperity Law are really excited to see and can’t wait to apply each milestone to enhance our way of working and what we can offer our clients.
To speak to us about your residential conveyancing needs you can contact our specialist team by calling 0151 958 0057 or by email Siobhan Beattie, Partner & Head of Conveyancing on siobhan@prosperitylaw.com.
