Last week, we shared a real-life situation where a signer presented a driver’s license as proof of identity to a Notary Signing Agent during a loan document signing. However, instead of the normal handwritten signature on the license, the signer had drawn three cartoon cat heads as his signature.
We asked our Notaries how they would handle this unusual situation and received a wide variety of responses. Here are some of the solutions offered by our readers.
What our Notaries said
Readers were divided on how they would handle this situation. Some, like Deborah J. Garhartt, said they would not accept the driver’s license with the cat-head signature. “You know it is not their normal, proper signature,” Garhartt said.
Other Notaries said they would ask the signer for an alternate, acceptable form of ID that included his normal written signature. “I would ask for another government-issued ID, such as a passport, showing the correct signature,” said Connie Holmes. “Then I would suggest that he go back and get his driver’s license corrected, since he will probably need it for other legal uses in the future.”
DeAnn Hailey said she would accept the driver’s license with the cat-head signature as proof of the signer’s identity — provided he signed the loan documents the same way.
“The signatures must match, so the signer would need to draw the same cat heads as they appear on the driver’s license, or provide other identification so that the signatures match,” she said.
Elizabeth A. Sutton suggested contacting the lender or signing service for instructions, or having the person sign their written name along with an “also known as” or “AKA” signature with the three cat heads.
“Best to notify title and get their input before continuing with the closing,” said Susan Petrie.
Standards of Notary Practice: Signatures for loan document signings
Naturally, many of our readers were concerned that if the customer signed his written name but his ID showed a very different signature of three cat-head drawings, a receiving agency could question the discrepancy and challenge the validity of the notarization and the loan documents.
To complicate matters further, the odd driver’s license signature was presented for a loan document signing. For many loan signings, the borrower must sign a signature affidavit confirming that the signature used in executing the loan documents is true and correct. If the signature on the loan documents didn’t match the one on the borrower’s ID, this could potentially cause serious problems later with the loan.
Having the signer present an alternate form of satisfactory ID that included his proper written signature would be an acceptable way to resolve the issue. However, that’s not what happened in the actual signing.
How was the situation resolved?
According to a post by the signer on Reddit, this real-life situation took place in Washington state. The Notary Signing Agent halted the signing and called the title company to request instructions. Ultimately, the signer was permitted to go ahead with the loan signing, but he was instructed by the title company to sign the loan documents using the same cat-head drawing on the driver’s license — more than 30 times!
One important lesson from this story is that it’s not a good idea to use a joke signature on key identification documents such as a driver’s license. It may seem funny at the time, but as this story shows, it can cause serious issues for important transactions such as a home purchase.
David Thun is the Assistant Managing Editor with the National Notary Association.
Related Articles:
Notary Tip: When the signer doesn’t match their ID
The 3 ways Notaries can properly identify signers
A Notary's guide to different kinds of signatures