RE-Mortgage application witness signature & guarantor??

Apples2

Also posted here


A good friend of mine has applied for a £30k remortgage.

I know his position and know he can comfortably afford his repayments (friend for years and work together).

He has requested I sign his application as a WITNESS to his signature.

The form he has presented is mostly pre-completed by the mortgage company with just the signature boxes to complete.

The guarantor box is blank.

The witness box is where my concern lies.
The box title says "Witness and/or Guarantor (if required)"

Why is this box muddied? i.e why isn't there a separate box for witness and another one for guarantor??

Whilst I am happy to sign as a Witness, I am not prepared to act as guarantor.

Can anyone shed any light on this??

Can I sign safe in the knowledge it is only a Witness signature and I would not be making the mistake of ending up as a guarantor??

I would imagine if I was to act as guarantor I would have my own forms (or boxes) to fill out asking for more than a signature and address (which could easily to forged.

I do trust him but am simply looking out for my own interests.

many thanks.

~Brock~

Off trade agreements, particularly those relating to loans secured on land that are subject to statutory cooling off periods, do require witness signatures so this is normal.

Why the box on this form is a combined witness/guarantor signature box is anybody's guess, but you could always write the words 'as witness' in brackets after your signature so as to leave no doubt as to the capacity in which you are signing.

jonesMUFCforever

For any guarantee to be legal they would have to advice you to get independent legal advice before they would accept you as a guarantor.
So as long as they don't ask for the name and address of your solicitor and you do write witness in the box you should be safe.