What if there is a mistake on my deed poll, or I signed it wrongly?

Which mistakes actually matter?#

Measure the deed against HM Passport Office's test, because it is published in full. Its caseworker guidance, version 28.0, says staff must accept an unenrolled deed poll that is signed in the old and new names, signed by at least one witness, carries only wet ink signatures, is dated and is a contemporaneous document. Staff must ask for a new deed if it "has not been signed in both the old and new name or by at least one witness", has no wet signature, is not dated, or they have "doubts about how genuine it is", and no passport is issued until you send one.

So every mistake is one of three kinds: it fails the test, the test does not mention it, or it raises the doubt.

My name is spelt wrongly on the deed#

A deed poll exists to link two exact names, and HM Passport Office's guidance says it will not accept change of name evidence that does not show a clear link between the old and new names. A misspelt former name no longer follows on from your birth certificate or passport. A misspelt new name records a name you do not use, and the same guidance says no passport is issued while there are doubts or inconsistencies between the name applied for and the supporting documents. The fix is a new deed, with your former name exactly as your birth certificate or last passport shows it.

I wrote the wrong date#

In GOV.UK's wording for a deed poll the date follows the words "Signed as a deed on", so it records the day of signing, and GOV.UK says a signed deed can be used as proof straight away. An earlier date records a change before it was made, which is backdating. A later one can make genuine evidence look premature: HM Passport Office accepts a driving licence, a foreign passport or an identity card as proof that you use your new name only if it was issued after your change of name document, and DVLA's list carries the same condition. Do not write over the date; make a new deed and date it the day you sign.

Something went wrong with a witness#

The law asks for one witness: section 1 of the Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989 says an individual validly executes a deed by signing it in the presence of a witness who attests the signature. So one witness signature where there is space for two meets both the Act and the passport office's test, and a witness who signed in the wrong space has still witnessed the deed.

Two witness mistakes matter more than they look. A witness who was not in the room when you signed, or who signed afterwards, did not attest a signature made in their presence, and the Act is not met however tidy the page looks; make a new deed at one sitting. A close relative, or someone who lives at your address, satisfies the Act and the passport office, but GOV.UK warns that some organisations will not accept a deed poll witnessed that way. If a bank or an employer may need to see it too, a fresh deed with two independent witnesses removes the question.

I crossed something out, or used correction fluid#

HM Passport Office's guidance on handling documents tells staff to check everything it receives for damage, counterfeiting or potential fraudulent tampering, to look for lines, tears or folds through the core details that could hide an amendment, and to put a document that appears tampered with through additional checks before referring it for investigation. A name crossed out, a date written over or a patch of correction fluid is what those checks look for, and our guarantee does not cover a deed altered after signing.

If the altered or damaged deed is one you have been using for a while, our replacement deed poll records the same change, with the date you originally made it, on a clean page; a corrected, torn or laminated deed is one of the reasons it exists.

When is a fresh deed simply safer?#

Whenever the answer is not clear-cut. GOV.UK publishes wording for making your own deed poll and says a signed one can be used straight away, so a new deed costs little and settles the question. It is worth making after a wrong date, with a relative or housemate as a witness, after any correction, and always when you have not yet sent the deed anywhere. Sign it at one sitting, in wet ink, in front of two independent witnesses, and date it that day; the signing guide's four habits keep it clean.

What if the mistake is in a deed you drafted?#

Every deed we draft follows what you entered at the checkout, and a second person checks every name against your order before printing. Our acceptance guarantee draws the line between drafting and signing. A deed we drafted that a UK organisation refuses is covered: we raise it with the organisation ourselves, and if it is still refused we refund the price in full. Details typed wrongly at the checkout are not, which is why the confirmation email lists everything you entered, to check the moment it arrives. Nor is a deed signed or witnessed wrongly, which is refused for the signing rather than the drafting; but tell us before you correct anything, because an altered deed can be refused and a paralegal will say what to do.