Bank rejected your signature? What to do when it doesn't match the old one

What does the bank compare your signature with?

Most banks record your signature when you open an account. This is your specimen signature: a copy given on paper or on a signing tablet, which the bank keeps. When you later sign a paper instruction, contract or declaration, the clerk compares it with that.

They aren't a handwriting expert, and they don't measure letters with a ruler. They look at whether the two signatures could, overall, have come from the same hand: is the capital similar, the length, the slant and the shape? If these differ noticeably, the bank errs on the side of caution, because it's your money it's protecting.

How close does it have to be? There's no rule you can measure in centimetres. A small difference is completely natural, since nobody writes exactly the same way twice, and clerks know that. The trouble starts when the two signatures look, at first glance, as if they came from two different people: a different capital, half the length, or one legible and the other a single line. When the difference is that big, they'll almost certainly ask.

Why doesn't it match? The most common reasons

It's almost never about someone writing their name wrong. A signature simply changes, and the specimen doesn't keep up.

• Many years have passed. There can be decades between the signature you gave at eighteen and today's. In the meantime it shortens and speeds up on its own.
• A new name. After marriage or divorce the surname is different, so the signature is too. Our article on your signature after marriage covers this.
• A different surface. A signature on a tablet or signing pad often looks quite different from one on paper. Our article on signing on a screen explains why.
• Haste. Standing at a counter with a queue behind us, we write faster, and the signature gets flatter and shorter.
• Age, illness, injury. A trembling hand, joint pain or a broken wrist can change the line completely.
• Several signatures. If you use a shorter version elsewhere, it's easy to write that at the bank too. Our article on having more than one signature helps you sort them out.

What to do at the counter if it's rejected

First and most important: don't take it personally. The clerk speaks up because this is how the bank stops someone else acting in your name. In most cases it can be sorted out in a few minutes.

1. 1
   Sign again, calmly. At your usual pace, not drawing it slowly. A slowly drawn signature has a trembling line and looks even less like the specimen.
2. 2
   Show your ID. The bank can confirm who you are in other ways, and that often settles it.
3. 3
   Ask what they're comparing it with. You can simply ask the clerk what's different. It may turn out you gave the specimen under an old name or in a completely different form.
4. 4
   Ask to update your specimen. If the old specimen is no longer your current signature, the best fix is to give a new one there and then.

The bank isn't asking whether your signature is nice. It's asking whether it's really you.

How to update your specimen signature

The exact process varies by bank, but it's similar in most places. Before you go, check your bank's website or call customer service.

• Usually in person. Most banks ask for the new specimen in a branch, in person, so they can check your identity at the same time.
• Bring your ID. An ID card or passport, and after a name change a marriage certificate or another supporting document may also be needed.
• Sign in your current form. Give the signature you'll use for the coming years, not an especially nice, festive version.
• Ask what it covers. You may have several accounts or contracts with one bank. Ask whether the new specimen applies to all of them.

If you need to update several places at once, for example after a name change, our name change checklist helps make sure nothing is missed. For ID documents, see our article on the signature on your ID and passport.

How to get it accepted first time next time

The goal isn't a nicer signature but a consistent one. A good bank signature looks the same ten times out of ten, whether you write it standing up or in a hurry.

• One form for official places. At the bank, at offices and on documents, always use the same version. Keep short or decorative forms for cards.
• A fixed capital and length. These are the two things the eye notices fastest. If they match, smaller differences rarely cause trouble.
• Don't change it suddenly. If you want a new signature, introduce it first and update your specimen at the bank. Our article on changing your signature explains how.
• Practise at speed too. Write it ten times, one under another, at your usual pace. If all ten look alike, the bank won't have a problem either.
• Think about small spaces too. Bank forms and signing pads often leave little room. Try your signature in a small box too, so it doesn't get squashed there. Our article on signing in a small space can help.

If you can't sign the way you used to

In later life, or after an illness or injury, the hand sometimes simply won't make the old form. That's not your fault, and it isn't rare.

• Tell the bank. If they know what has changed, they can help more easily. Most banks have a procedure for people who can no longer sign the old way.
• Give a new specimen as you are now. A simpler, shorter signature you can definitely repeat is worth more than an old form you can no longer manage.
• Ask about the options. What's available in your case, such as a power of attorney or another procedure, is always a question for your bank.

If you're helping a family member, go together and book an appointment, so you don't have to sort everything out while a queue waits.

Before you go to the bank: a short checklist

1. 1
   Do you have your ID? An ID card or passport, and if your name has changed, the document showing that too.
2. 2
   Which signature did you give? If you can't remember, ask the clerk before you sign.
3. 3
   Are you writing the same form? Not the short or decorative version, but the official one.
4. 4
   Do you have time? If you're updating your specimen, book an appointment and don't go in the minutes before closing.

Before you sign anything, it's worth reading the paper through too. Our pre-signing checklist helps with that.

Practise until it's consistent

If your current signature is different every time, Calligra can help you bring order to it. It scores the signature you write on the screen on five criteria: legibility, uniqueness, elegance, balance and speed, with the reason behind every number. If you choose a new signature from more than 30 styles, the practice pad shows you with every try how close it is to the design.

That way you can see exactly when you've reached the point where it comes out the same ten times out of ten, and only take it to the bank once it's really yours. You'll find more methods in our practice article.

Questions