Why am I being asked to provide certified bank statements?
As part of your verification, the organisation that requested your Thirdfort check may ask you to provide bank statements. By law, when dealing with large amounts of money, solicitors and law firms have to understand where that money comes from. This helps stop fraud and prevent money laundering.
If the organisation has specifically requested that you provide certified bank statements, these have to be obtained directly from your bank or building society.
What are the requirements for a certified bank statement?
The document must meet the following criteria:
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A certified bank statement must be dated within the last 90 days.
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It must be signed or stamped by the bank.
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It must show your bank's name or logo.
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It must confirm your address, bank account number and name.
How can I get certified statements?
You can either print the statements yourself and take them into your local branch to be certified, or you can get them printed at your local branch.
Here is an example of a certified bank statement:
Why is this so important in the property market?
Property transactions are high-risk and involve the transfer of large sums of money. This makes the property market a big target for fraudsters and criminals. With an excess of 4 billion pounds of fraud in conveyancing per year, solicitors and law firms have an obligation to identify any client who pays money and know how the money was generated. Proving a client's source of funds is an essential phase in the conveyancing process. By law, a solicitor cannot proceed with your purchase without this evidence.
If you need to upload the certified bank statements through the Thirdfort app, you can find guidance on how to do this here.