Does changing your name by deed poll actually have to cost you anything?

[1Catherine1]

Hi all,

I recently got married and want to take part of my husbands surname rather than all of it. I've been told the only way to do this is to change my name by deed poll. So I've been looking it up on various websites and have now learnt that there is no government agency that deals with this but there seems to be loads of private companies that do it for you. They charge between £10 to £50 with one site claiming they will do it for free.

How likely is it that the one that will do it for free will actually be accepted by DVLA, the passport office and the banks.

Anyone have any experience of using these companies?

TIA

if you got married then you can change your name to any variation that you want without resorting to doing it by deed poll. When you change your surname for your passport, etc then fill the application in with the surname you want and send a copy of your marriage certificate.

No. I just copied some text of the internet and got it witnessed. This was to take my maiden name as a middle name when I got married. I don't think you even have to do that but didnt cost me anything except a couple pieces of paper. Has been accepted by dvla and banks.

or maybe I'm wrong

Thanks for the reply, ilovepowerhoop, that's what I thought but the man in the bank was quite insistent that I was wrong, and that I would have to take his name as it was written on the certificate. Although he also insisted that the marriage certificate changed my name automatically, even though I know that isn't true and told him as much.

Thank you BrambkyHedge - this is what I was hoping was the case. I will do it tomorrow.

my son changed his by deed poll he used an online free one and has had no problems

You can do it yourself if you want. It's perfectly legal. This company is honest about it: deed-poll-office.org.uk/faq#can-I-prepare-my-own-deed-poll

So long as you so it properly, the IPS / DVLA will accept it ? they're very well up on these things, and they know what a deed poll is and they'll know if it's been done right.

Pretty much all other organisations basically have no idea if your deed poll is valid or not, so it really depends on who is given the responsibility of accepting it or not. Banks are the most likely to refuse your deed poll because bank staff have no legal training, and at the same time they're expected to try and prevent fraud.

A deed poll from a private company has the advantage that it'll look more professional (and it'll have their logo on it), so buying one from them may save you the bother of having someone doubt it. If the person working in the bank realises you did it yourself, then they won't have any idea if it's done right, and so ... they'll have to trust you.

Of course, if the bank cast any doubts on a deed poll you've bought from a private company, you can just get them to sort it out. So they do give you some peace of mind.

It's also a bit like anything really ... do you buy your sandwich from a deli, or do you make them yourself at home?