The Most Frequent Notary Signing Agent Mistakes and Best Practices to Overcome Them

Published August 25, 2024 · Updated May 21, 2026

Loan signings involve 100 to 200 pages of documents, tight deadlines, and a borrower who is usually signing the biggest financial transaction of their life. Mistakes happen. The difference between a new signing agent and an experienced one is not whether errors occur, but how many and how fast they get caught.

A single missed signature can push a closing back by days, cost the title company hundreds in redraw fees, and get you dropped from their notary list. Here are the mistakes that show up most often and what to do about each one.

Incomplete Notary Certificates

This is the one that gets new agents blacklisted fastest. The notary certificate (acknowledgment or jurat) is the only page in the entire loan package that the notary is personally responsible for. If you forget to sign it, forget your seal, leave the date blank, or fail to fill in the venue (state and county), the entire notarization is invalid. The title company has to send someone back out to the borrower, or the borrower has to come to them. Either way, you look bad and the closing gets delayed.

What to check before you leave the table:

• Your signature on every notary certificate
• Your seal (stamp or embosser) is clear and legible, not cut off at the edge
• The venue shows the correct state and county where the signing took place
• The date matches the actual signing date
• The signer’s name is spelled correctly and matches how they signed
• The type of notarization (acknowledgment vs. jurat) matches what the document requires

Missed Signatures and Initials on Key Documents

A typical loan package has the borrower initial or sign on nearly every page. The 1003 loan application alone runs several pages, and each one needs initials. The note, the mortgage (or deed of trust), the truth-in-lending disclosure, and various addendums all require signatures or initials. Miss even one, and the title company or lender will call you to go back or will have to redraw the documents.

The fix is a page-by-page review at the end of the signing. Before you pack up:

• Flip through every page of the loan application (1003) for required initials
• Check that the note is signed and initialed on each page
• Verify the mortgage or deed of trust has signatures and initials where required
• Confirm all addendums and riders are signed
• Look for any sticky notes or flags left by the title company indicating where signatures are needed

Some agents use a checklist specific to each lender’s package. After a few dozen signings with the same lender, you learn which pages are the usual trouble spots.

Making Corrections Without Approval

Borrowers sometimes spell their name differently than it appears on the documents. A borrower named “Robert J. Smith” on the loan documents might sign “Bob Smith” out of habit. Or they might notice that their address is listed with the wrong zip code and want to fix it on the spot.

Do not let them. And do not make corrections yourself. The only documents where corrections are generally accepted without prior approval are the notary certificate and the Right to Cancel (rescission) form. For everything else, you need to contact the title company or signing service and get instructions. Changing a name, date, or address on a loan document without approval can void the document and create legal liability.

If the borrower insists something is wrong and wants to change it, note it in your notary journal, call the title company while you are still at the table, and follow their instructions. If they say to leave it and they will handle it on their end, write that down too.

Printing Documents at the Wrong Size

Loan documents arrive as PDFs, and they are formatted for specific paper sizes. Some pages are letter size (8.5 x 11 inches) and some are legal size (8.5 x 14 inches). If your printer is set to “fit to page” or “shrink to printable area,” legal-size pages get compressed onto letter-size paper. This can cut off text, shrink signatures, or distort the layout. Lenders and title companies will reject documents that are not printed at the correct size.

Before printing:

• Set your printer to “actual size” or 100% scaling
• Make sure the paper tray is loaded with both letter and legal paper
• Use a dual-tray printer so letter and legal pages print automatically without swapping paper
• Check the first few pages after printing to confirm they match the PDF dimensions

A dual-tray laser printer costs $150 to $300 and is a non-negotiable piece of equipment for a signing agent. If you are still using a single-tray inkjet, upgrade before you accept your first assignment.

Incomplete Disbursement Forms

The disbursement or settlement statement (often the Closing Disclosure or HUD-1) shows where every dollar in the transaction goes. If the disbursement form is incomplete or has incorrect payoff amounts, the loan cannot fund. This means the seller does not get paid, the buyer cannot take possession, and the entire chain of transactions backed up behind this closing stalls out.

Review the disbursement form for:

• Borrower’s name and property address matching the rest of the package
• Loan amount, interest rate, and monthly payment matching the note
• All fees, payoffs, and credits listed with correct amounts
• Any instructions from the title company about which fields to fill in vs. which are pre-populated

Errors on Patriot Act and ID Verification Forms

USA PATRIOT Act compliance requires that the notary verify the borrower’s identity and record specific information from their government-issued photo ID. If you copy down the wrong ID number, misspell the name on the ID, or enter the wrong expiration date, the lender’s compliance team will flag the file. This can delay funding while they request corrections.

Common errors on these forms:

• ID number transposed or incomplete (driver’s license numbers can be long)
• ID expiration date entered incorrectly
• Name on the ID does not match the name on the loan documents (this may require a call to the title company)
• Failing to record the type of ID (driver’s license, passport, state ID)
• Forgetting to include the issuing state or agency

Copy the information directly from the ID itself, not from what the borrower tells you. People sometimes give you their old address, a slightly different name, or a wrong expiration date from memory.

Stamping Documents That Do Not Need Notarization

Out of 150 pages in a loan package, only a handful actually require notarization. Typically these are the mortgage or deed of trust, any affidavits, and sometimes a name affidavit or correction affidavit. The note, the truth-in-lending disclosures, the 1003 application, and most addendums do not get notarized.

Stamping a document that does not require notarization is not just unnecessary. It can create confusion for the recorder’s office, trigger questions from the lender’s compliance team, and in some states may be a violation of notary law. Only apply your stamp and seal to documents that include a notary certificate or that the signing instructions specifically identify as needing notarization.

Scanback Errors

Many signing services and title companies require you to scan the signed documents back to them before shipping the originals. This is called a scanback. The purpose is to let the title company review the documents for errors before the package ships, so they can catch problems early.

Scanback errors happen when:

• Legal-size pages are scanned as letter-size, cutting off the bottom of the document
• Pages are scanned in the wrong order
• Pages are missing from the scan entirely
• The scan is too dark, too light, or blurry to read
• The file size is too large to email

Set your scanner to detect page size automatically, or manually select legal size for legal-size documents. Scan at 200 to 300 DPI. Check the first few pages of the scan to make sure they are readable and complete before sending.

Missing Scanback and Shipping Deadlines

If the signing instructions say scanbacks are due within 2 hours of the signing, they mean it. If the FedEx cutoff at your local drop box is 7:00 PM and you show up at 7:15, the package does not ship until the next day. For a purchase closing with a tight deadline, that one-day delay can blow up the entire deal.

Plan your logistics before the signing:

• Know the cutoff times for every FedEx and UPS drop location near the signing
• Complete scanbacks as soon as the signing ends, before you leave the borrower’s location if possible
• Use the FedEx or UPS mobile app to schedule pickups or find late drop boxes
• Always get a receipt when you drop off the package, and photograph it with your phone
• If the signing runs late and you will miss the cutoff, call the signing service immediately to arrange an alternative

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if I make a mistake during a loan signing?

It depends on the mistake. A missed initial can often be fixed with a quick trip back to the borrower. An unsigned notary certificate is more serious and requires a new notarization. If the lender rejects the documents, the title company may ask you to return at no additional charge. Repeated mistakes will get you removed from their notary list.

Can I fix a mistake on a notary certificate after the signing?

In most states, you can correct a notary certificate if the correction is made in the presence of the signer. You cross out the error, write the correct information, and initial the change. Some states require a new certificate entirely. Check your state’s notary handbook for the specific procedure.

Does errors and omissions insurance cover signing mistakes?

E&O insurance covers financial damages caused by your notarial errors, up to the policy limit. It does not cover intentional misconduct or criminal acts. A $25,000 policy is the minimum most signing services require, and it costs about $30 to $60 per year.

How do I know which documents require notarization in a loan package?

The signing instructions from the title company will list which documents need notarization. If the document includes a notary certificate (a block of text with venue, date, and signature lines for the notary), it requires notarization. When in doubt, check the instructions or call the title company.