UK Landlord Forum / Life

Who do you use to witness signatures on tenancy agreements and guarantor agreements?

Thanks, Joe

Please be careful of advice received from websites (including my own) and always do your own research.
Obviously I cannot understand your full situation from a small blog...

Usually the agent can witness if you are using one but......

Legally an Agreement does not require a witness.
A Deed will require a witness but it also needs to be completely clear that diocument is a deed...(you can have no doubt) it must be labelled Deed.
Do you have a Deed of Guarantee?

Anyway it doesn't hurt to get an Agreement witnessed....just not needed.
However I have seen lots of agent agreements have a place for the witness to sign and its usually easier to get a witness than have them amend the agreement as they're unlikely to understand.

There is guidance on witnessing deeds and to be accurate I have copied this from the government website:
"the relevant legislation does not prevent a signatory’s spouse, civil partner or cohabitee from acting as a witness (if they are not a party to a deed), but this is best avoided. It is also advisable that the witness be no younger than 18 or, at least, of sufficient maturity for their evidence to be relied on should it later prove necessary to verify the circumstances under which the execution took place."

The issue being that the witness should not be a beneficiary of the agreement, the advice not to use your wife is due to the issue that through another instrument (e.g. a will) they may become one

Hope that helps

Best of luck

Ok makes sense, its just who to actually use.

Don't have an agent. So I was going to go to maybe the post office or bank or something, but I assume by your post a friend would do? Do they have to be of some stature in life, a policeman or doctor? Or just my local geezer from down the pub?

Geezer down the pub is ok but he has to actually witness you signing it.
They do not need to be a "person of standing".

But better to use someone you know in case they have to corroborate your agreement at a later date.
No point in a witness that cannot be called on if needed (Remote chance of needing this though)