Notary Services Limited
Services Information
Basic Service Information
The service provided to you is that of a Notary Public carrying out all permitted notarial activities including, where appropriate, arranging legalisation of documents and arranging for them to be sent to their final destination, usually abroad. An essential part of a notary’s role is to maintain and keep records. You can view details of how your data is handled on this website https://notaryservicesltd.co.uk/privacy-notice/.
Detailed Service Information
Each notarial matter is different and the requirements and timescales will vary according to whether the client is a private individual or a company and according to the processing times of third parties such as the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, legalisation agents, translating agencies and couriers, etc. Some of the typical key stages are likely to include:
1. Receiving and reviewing the documents to be notarised together with any instructions you may have received;
2. Liaising with your legal advisors or other bodies to obtain the necessary documentation to deal with the document (e.g. information from Companies House or foreign registries, powers of attorney etc);
3. Checking the identity, capacity and authority of the person who is to sign the document;
4. If a document is to be certified, checking with the issuing authorities that the document/award is genuine. In the case of academic awards, this would entail checking with the appropriate academic institutions;
5. Meeting with the signatory to verify their identity and to ascertain that they understand what they are signing and that they are doing so of their own free will and ensuring that the document is executed correctly;
6. Drafting and affixing or endorsing a notarial certificate to the document;
7. Arranging for the legalisation of the document, upon request, as appropriate;
8. Arranging for the storage of copies of all notarised documents in accordance with the requirements of the Notarial Practice Rules 2019.
Fee Information
You will normally be given a fixed fee in writing (by email) prior to your appointment. In cases where our fee is to be charged by reference to time, the applicable hourly rate will be given to you in writing, together with a fee estimate, prior to the appointment. At the same time, you will be given notice of any sums anticipated to be incurred as disbursements. This business is not required to be registered with HMRC for VAT purposes. Payment of fees can be made by cash or card/bank transfer to the Notary Services Limited business account, as detailed on the invoice sent to you. Payment of all fees and disbursements falls due when the document has been prepared, which may be retained by the notary pending payment in full.
Occasionally unforeseen or unusual issues arise during the course of the matter which may result in a revision of the notary’s fee estimate. Examples of this could include where additional documents are required to be notarised, additional translations or legalisations are needed to meet the requirements of the receiving jurisdiction, third party fees are adjusted to reflect external factors such as fuel price changes and so on. In these circumstances, you will be notified of any changes in the fee estimate as soon as possible.
Redress
I am insured under a professional indemnity policy for at least £1,000,000.
Regulator and Complaints Procedure
This notarial practice is regulated through the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury:
The Faculty Office
1, The Sanctuary
Westminster
London SW1P 3JT
Telephone: 020 7222 5381
Email: Faculty.office@1thesanctuary.com
Website: www.facultyoffice.org.uk
If you are dissatisfied about the service you have received please do not hesitate to contact us.
If we are unable to resolve the matter you may then complain to the Notaries Society, who have a Complaints Procedure which is approved by the Faculty Office. This procedure is free to use and is designed to provide a quick resolution to any dispute.
In that case please write (but do not enclose any original documents) with full details of your complaint to :-
The Secretary of The Notaries Society
P O Box 876
Chichester PO19 9ZH
Email: secretary@thenotariessociety.org.uk
If you have any difficulty in making a complaint in writing please do not hesitate to call the Notaries Society/the Faculty Office for assistance.
Finally, even if you have your complaint considered under the Notaries Society Approved Complaints Procedure, you may at the end of that procedure, or after a period of 8 weeks from the date you first notified me that you were dissatisfied, make your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman[1], if you are not happy with the result:
Legal Ombudsman
PO Box 6806
Wolverhampton WV1 9WJ
Telephone: 0300 555 0333
Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Website: www.legalombudsman.org.uk
If you decide to make a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman, you must refer your matter to the Legal Ombudsman within one year from the act/omission or within one year from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.
[1] Please note that certain kinds of commercial entities are not eligible to make a complaint to the Legal Ombudsman – please refer to the Legal Ombudsman Scheme Rules or consult the Faculty Office.
Submit An Enquiry
We are here to help you. If you require any advice, guidance, additional information or a quote to carry out work on your behalf, then please complete the form provided and we will contact you at our earliest opportunity.
Alternatively, you can contact us either by email or telephone using the details below: