Website Spot Check – Rule 14.2 of the Notaries Practice Rules 2019

Under Rule 14.2 of the Notaries’ Practice Rules 2019 notaries must ensure that clear information on pricing, redress, service, complaints and regulatory information is available for the public to access on their websites. This includes:

• The basis upon which the notary calculates their fees for their services (price information);
• A brief outline of the services the notary provides (both reserved legal activities and other legal activities) setting out the key stages of the work (if more than one) and the normal timescales for each key stage (service information);
• The level of insurance which the notary carries under their professional indemnity policy (redress information);
• Confirmation that the notary is covered by a formal complaints procedure in the event that a client is dissatisfied with the service provided and an explanation of how to make such a complaint (complaint information); and
• Confirmation that the notary is ‘Regulated through the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury’ (regulatory information).

To check the level of compliance the Faculty Office completed a desk-based review of a sample of websites supplied by notaries in their 2022 practicing certificate renewal application.

A full report of the findings can be viewed here.