According to research from OneID and DocuSign, based on figures from the ONS, which showed that 77,390 residential property transactions took place in January, this could mean that over 360,000 hours could be lost to manual processes in conveyancing in a month.
The report, which is based on 1,000 adults who bought a house in the last three years, highlighted that 64 per cent had to sign physical documents.
Around 57 per cent physically had to hand over documents to solicitors or visit a notary or validate their ID and address in person respectively. Nearly half had to have a witness countersign contracts in person.
The report continued that around 11 per cent of house buyers lose a days’ worth of working time due to having to complete tasks in person.
The research also revealed that there is strong appetite for the government to bring out digital IDs that would allow users to incorporate their driving licence, passport, tax records and qualifications into one place, with 61 per cent of those surveyed in favour of such a solution.
Tech solutions are there but not ‘fully incorporated’
Around two years ago, HM Land Registry introduced a new standard for digital ID verification and a year ago it brought out a standard for electronic signatures. This was to encourage this use of these digital tools in house buying.
Alan Browne, senior director of solution consulting EMEA at DocuSign, added: “It has been two years since HM Land Registry published guidelines on making identity verification more digitised and one year since they did something similar for incorporating electronic signatures.
“We knew adoption would take time, but what this research shows is that while consumer demand is there and the technological solutions are there, there is still some way to go until those methods are fully incorporated into conveyancing, and before UK house buyers – and the economy as a whole – reaps the full benefit.”
Mike Harlow, deputy chief executive and deputy chief land registrar at the HM Land Registry, said: “[There was] widespread demand across the conveyancing market for more secure and convenient identity verification solutions, [leading to it introducing its standards].
“We are delighted that a number of ID providers in the market have developed or are developing identity checks which would meet the requirements of the HMLR Digital Identity Standard.
“We’re aware of investment being made in tech companies over the past 12 months to support the development of easy-to-use digital identity tools. This is now influencing conveyancing firms who are making identity procurement decisions,” he noted.
Natwest allows those who need to sign documents to verify identity using an existing banking login, through OneID, which covered around 46 million UK residents.
Claire Melling, head of bank of APIs at Natwest Group, commented: “We recognise that our customers are spending more time on digital platforms, and we’re focused on making our services fit those habits. As a trusted institution, we have a key role to play in the emerging concept of digital identity.
“Our new Customer Attribute Sharing service will provide our customers with a safe, secure and convenient way to verify their identity online, while enabling businesses to speed up and streamline customers’ online experiences. We’re excited that businesses and consumers are now experiencing the benefits of this service.”
Adrian Field, director of market Ddevelopment at OneID, added: “OneID, as a certified identity provider under the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology’s trust framework, has developed a best-of-breed identity solution that is the fastest, safest and cheapest on the market.
“We have joined up with leading partners in e-signing and banking, and are working with mortgage platform providers to enable a 100 per cent digital process that will speed up the home buying journey and save customers thousands of hours.”
