Skipton Building Society has begun a pilot allowing remortgage customers to sign mortgage deeds digitally.
The lender is working with HM Land Registry, conveyancing firms Conveyancing Direct and Your Conveyancer, and technology provider Veyco on the scheme.
The pilot uses Qualified Electronic Signatures, which verify the signatory’s identity and remove the need for paper deeds and witnessed signatures. HM Land Registry now accepts the signatures.
Skipton said the trial was intended to reduce delays during remortgage transactions. If successful, it could be extended to other parts of the mortgage process.
Simon Farrell-Roberts (pictured), head of lending at Skipton Building Society, said: “We’re always looking for ways to make the mortgage journey as straightforward as possible for our customers.
“The introduction of Qualified Electronic Signatures has the potential to simplify an important stage of the remortgage process by reducing paperwork and enabling documents to be signed digitally and securely.
“This pilot is an important step in our wider ambition to modernise the mortgage journey. By working closely with HM Land Registry, Conveyancing Direct, Your Conveyancer and colleagues across Skipton Group, we’re exploring how technology can help deliver a smoother, more efficient experience for customers while supporting greater digitalisation across the industry.”
The initiative involves Skipton Building Society and Connells Group, the property services and estate agency business owned by Skipton Group.
Andy Roddy, deputy director – digital services at HM Land Registry, said: “Congratulations to Skipton Building Society on their pilot for digitally signed mortgage deeds using Qualified Electronic Signatures (QES).
“This is another important milestone in the transformation of the UK property market, demonstrating that QES adoption is gathering real momentum across the sector.
“Skipton, alongside Your Conveyancer and CDPL, have shown the kind of collaborative spirit needed to drive meaningful change in the homebuying process.
“By embracing QES, Skipton is helping to remove friction at a critical moment for customers and members, making transactions faster, simpler and more efficient.
“We hope Skipton’s pilot will encourage further lenders and conveyancers to explore QES and take the next step toward a fully digital conveyancing journey.
“Our Strategy 2025+ is committed to supporting exactly this kind of innovation, and we look forward to seeing this momentum continue in the market and progress ambitions of an end-to-end digital conveyancing process.”
