How Online Notarization Makes Financial Transactions Easier

Businesses and consumers increasingly prefer digital options for managing their finances. According to a recent study conducted by Harris Poll and Plaid, consumers report that digital financial services save them time (93%) and money (78%), help them make smarter financial decisions (73%) and reduce financial stress (71%).  Consumers want the option to make payments, withdraw money, finance a car, buy insurance and more — completely online. The pandemic has only accelerated the need to digitize financial services.  

Notarization plays a big role in financial services

Notarizations are required for a wide range of financial transactions, both business-to-business and business-to-consumer, and ensure that parties within agreements are authenticated and willing, and the documents are completed properly.

Mortgage closings are commonly known, but there are many other events that likely require notarized documents, including:

• Insurance claims
• Equipment financing
• Retirement plan changes & withdrawals
• Automobile financing & title transfers
• Credit repair (fraud or debt validation) forms
• Trustee certifications
• Wills

And while financial institutions might be able to offer most services online, notarization is often the stubborn last mile that disrupts a fully-digital user experience. By implementing an online notarization platform, financial institutions and insurance companies can ensure the entire transaction process remains digital.

Customers aren’t the only ones who will benefit from seamless online transactions; financial institutions have just as much to gain. For example, Notarize worked with one insurance company who saw significant improvements to their total loss claims process:

• An 11-day reduction in in total loss handling time;
• A document accuracy rate of nearly 99%, eliminating the need for rework; and 
• An 80% decrease in shipping costs as documents don’t need to be sent back and forth.

These are immense time and money savings that can have a big impact on insurers’ bottom lines, while also meeting customer expectations for a fully-online claims process.

Customers expect notarization to happen online, as well

According to a recent Harris Poll report, 79% of people surveyed wished there was an easier, faster way to get documents notarized, and 59% believed that the traditional notarization process hasn’t kept up with the times. With an online notarization platform, financial institutions can provide their customers with a truly seamless digital experience. Customers can upload their documents to a platform like Notarize, verify their identity and be connected with a real life notary via secure audio-video conferencing technology. The notary provides a digital seal and the original digital documents are sent to the customer. The whole process can take under 10 minutes.

This online process is safer, simpler and more secure than meeting with an in-person notary. And most importantly, it enables customers to have the convenience of the fully-digital experience they’re looking for. With an online notarization platform, they can have documents notarized any time, from anywhere, as long as they have a computer, phone or tablet connected to the internet.

Mitigating risks of fraud in financial transactions

With financial transactions increasingly being done online, there is growing concern (and risk) around identity theft and fraud. When it comes to notarization, performing them through an online platform is actually a better fraud deterrent than doing them in-person. An online notarization platform like Notarize relies on database-driven ID verification and knowledge-based authentication technology to confirm identities. With traditional, in-person notarizations you are relying solely on the judgment of the notary, whereas bringing notarizations online provides an additional layer of fraud protection.

Interested in learning more about online notarization for financial services? Click here.

If you are a technology provider helping your financial services customers to digitize their workflows, click here.