Analysis from Novus Strategy showed that only two businesses had started to submit Qualified Electronic Signatures (QES) since this was introduced by the Land Registry in August last year, and the organisation invited conveyancers and other professionals to use them.
According to findings from a Freedom of Information request, just one e-signature was used by the end of 2025.
Novus Strategy said that while the use of e-signatures was still low, adoption could surge rapidly, like other technologies.
E-signatures not expected to be an overnight success
Novus Strategy CEO Claire Van der Zant said: “You can’t just flick a switch and start using QES tomorrow. QES is just one of the components that unlocks interoperability in the property transaction.
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“Lenders, conveyancers and every organisation involved should be actively assessing where data and processes cause friction and break the customer journey. Only once you do that, both internally and externally, can you build the foundations that unlock solutions such as QES, and start to tackle the fall-throughs and excessive completion times that plague the industry.”
She said this was the “configuration conundrum” firms had to navigate.
“It’s less about whether the technology is fit for purpose, and much more about redesigning the customer journey to leverage new digital components, Smart Data and orchestration infrastructure,” Van der Zant added.
She continued: “This is why QES was never going to be an overnight success and why we’ve always said that rising QES use will signal that much more is going on behind the scenes. This isn’t a question of willingness to adopt, it’s a symptom of ability to adapt.”
A challenge beyond adoption
Novus Strategy found that even if the two businesses that had used QES did so regularly, adoption would only be 0.03%. Land Registry did not confirm whether the customers using the technology were conveyancing firms, though these make up the majority of its clients.
Novus Strategy said the slow take-up showed that the mortgage and home buying industry had a “configuration problem rather than a technology problem”, which could not be solved piecemeal. It said firms needed to redesign their systems and connect with the wider ecosystem.
Novus Strategy said the market for digital ID solution providers also needed to mature, as the number integrated with QES solutions was still low.
It said firms would also need to embrace Horizontal Digital Integration (HDI), the operating framework that connects individual infrastructures into one where evidence, decisions and data can flow seamlessly across organisations.
Last month, the Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology (CFIT) published its Open Property roadmap, demonstrating the importance of Smart Data.
Van der Zant said: “We reported earlier in the year that adoption was slow and there continue to be reasons why this is the case.
“For one, there’s still a dearth of integrated digital ID solutions, which is what conveyancers need if they’re to use QES. The important thing right now is not to get too tied up in the numbers.
She added: “Yes, they’re still low, and yes, they’re rising slowly, but this is how it starts. If we look at the uptake of Open Banking to draw parallels on the pace of adoption, the first three years yielded around 6% uptake, versus around 20% seven years from launch.
“What you’re witnessing here is the birth of a new way of executing the most complex consumer transaction on Earth, and QES is just one small part of that.”
