Blog by Andrew Gilchrist, Comms Officer at Registers of Scotland.
We’re excited to report that the rollout of our Digital Discharge Service (DDS) is continuing by leaps and bounds, and last month, Clydesdale Bank began using the live beta version of the service. We went to meet them and answer any questions they might have; as with the solicitor visit, I joined to gain a first-hand look at how DDS would impact this important segment of the mortgage discharge journey.
Inside the lender’s journey
For a meeting with one of Scotland’s leading lending firms, you might be surprised to hear that our meeting started with how solicitors interact with DDS. That’s because, as part of the wider introduction of DDS, we’re looking to provide as complete a picture as possible of the entire service, from start to finish. So, we began by showing the initial solicitor stage of DDS, and it was helpful to gain feedback on this section from a different perspective.
Throughout the development of DDS, we’ve recognised the value of a two-way conversation, and bringing actual users into the process. This time was no different, and as we ran through the lender discharge journey, from checking the details of the security to using existing card readers for secure digital signatures, we were looking for honest and diverse feedback on the new service.
For the lenders, they welcomed the opportunity to influence DDS while it is still in advanced development, and highlighted some features they would like to see included, while also pointing out a number of positive features. For our part, any feedback that we receive on specific features or possible ideas for inclusion is passed to the product and development team, so they can be considered for future improvements to the service. The lenders were also pleased to see the ability to clearly provide additional information on certain steps of the process, such as where they needed to decline a discharge.
Moving forward with DDS
A number of DDS’s new features were met with enthusiasm, from the extent of the security features to the speed with which completed submissions are received and finalised by RoS – the latter as a significant improvement on the previous system, which involved sending the paper discharge application back to the solicitor before sending to us. And as ever, we closed the meeting by giving the lenders an opportunity to test drive the new service, to let them get started on integrating the new service into their day-to-day activities.
Site visits like these are vital to the development of new services at RoS, and not just for DDS. We’ve forged strong relationships with our users, and we always love hearing feedback and suggestions as we develop new customer services as part of our digital transformation. This particular meeting arguably saved the best for last, with the reaction of the final user as she trialled the new service. “This is 100 times better than the old system!” Now that’s what we like to hear.
Whether you’re a solicitor or a lender, and would like to learn more about DDS and how it could benefit your business, contact Kevin Stewart for more information.
Follow the team via @RegistersOfScot on Twitter and on Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube for more updates. Want to comment? Let us know below!