Well-prepared Notary Signing Agents often bring pens, sticky notes and other tools with them on assignment. But be careful if there’s a brand name on your items — some lenders don’t want loan signing professionals using supplies with a competitor’s logo printed on them.
The NNA recently received an email from a title company requesting Signing Agents to refrain from wearing or carrying any items branded with any other lender’s information on it. This included stationery, tote bags, carryalls or items of clothing that the Agent may have received from a bank or lender.
When preparing for an assignment, check to make sure anything you carry or wear isn’t “branded” in a way that conflicts with the company that has given you the assignment. It may seem like a minor matter, but many companies are sensitive about the image a loan signing professional presents to a signer. Often, the Signing Agent is the only person the borrower interacts with face-to-face at a loan signing. Using generic items is the easiest way to avoid this issue.
David Thun is an Associate Editor at the National Notary Association.