Conveyancers have urged the Land Registry to reconsider its current rules allowing anyone buying and selling homes to use digital signatures when processing the TR1 transfer deed.

These rules, which have been in place since at least February this year, followed the huge shifts in home and remote working created by the Covid pandemic.

At the time, one of the main providers of electronic signatures, Docusign, said: “The land registry community is still digesting the corresponding operational logistics associated with this electronic signature guidance.

“We are encouraged that these guidelines will bring benefits to a variety of stakeholders ranging from conveyancers, lenders, buyers and estate agents, offering them flexibility, helping them reduce time, get a better signing experience and keep transfer deeds and other forms of dispositionary deeds fully digital.”

But the Society of Licensed Conveyancers (SLC) has pushed back today, saying its members are worried that under the current set-up both the seller and buyer must sign the same counterpart of the TR1, saying this “does not reflect the realities of modern digital workflows or the operational structures of many conveyancing practices,” it adds.

“In residential conveyancing, the practical difficulties are even more pronounced.

“Conveyancers acting for one party do not have access to the other party’s email address or mobile number, and to require this would introduce significant and unnecessary data protection (GDPR) risks.

“Further, if the other party experiences difficulty using the signing platform and their conveyancer is unfamiliar with it, there is no clear mechanism for support – raising concerns about the user experience and execution integrity.

“This stands in stark contrast to commercial conveyancing, where transactions often involve corporate entities with access to internal IT support and standardised digital processes.”

The SLC says it wants a more practical and scalable approach in residential transactions, and in particular is calling for an amendment to the current position to explicitly allow the TR1 to be digitally signed by the buyer and seller separately, using independently executed and digitally signed counterparts.

“This change would preserve the integrity of the document while aligning with established digital signing standards and offering greater flexibility for conveyancers and clients alike,” the SLC says.

“We urge HM Land Registry and relevant stakeholders to consider this amendment as a priority to ensure that digital conveyancing can continue to progress in a practical, secure, and accessible manner for all parties.”

Read more stories about the SLC.