Notary Public Underwriters Blog
When Can a Notary Use Personal Knowledge to Identify a Signer?
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- Published: October 14, 2024
Over the last year or so, I’ve seen the same notary at a local pack-and-ship store every time I need my signature notarized. Why does that notary still ask to see my identification?
A notary public should identify a person by use of “personal knowledge” only when the notary knows an individual long enough, and well enough, that the notary has absolute belief in the identity of the person appearing for the notarial act.
People that most notaries know with this level of confidence include family members, lifelong friends, and well-known coworkers.
But even with people the notary believes they personally know, document fraud can and does occur. For example, the named signer on a document presented for notarization is “Jane Alice Doe,” and the person presenting the document for notarization is “Jane Doe,” a known coworker of the notary. The notary performs the notarization, relying on their personal knowledge to identify “Jane Doe.” Later, the notary learns that the coworker was not “Jane Alice Doe,” but another “Jane Doe” with a different middle name. The coworker intentionally misrepresented themselves as the named document signer.
It’s hard to imagine a friend, coworker or family member involving a notary they know in a document-signing fraud, but it happens. If examination of an ID credential can resolve any ambiguity between the signer’s name as stated in the document presented for notarization, and the name the notary believes is that of the present individual, the notary should simply ask the present individual for their ID credential(s).
Notaries, this may surprise or even offend some individuals who feel you should know them well enough not to ask for an ID credential. Simply explain that you’re doing your due diligence as a notary because even though you “know” them, you don’t know their name as it appears on their ID credential(s). In addition, you must accurately enter their name in your record book (journal) of notarial acts.
Finally, always remember to include in your journal entry exactly how you identified individuals for whom you notarized, be it personal knowledge, an ID credential or (where allowed) reliance on a credible witness.
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