LINZ News
e-dealing celebrates its 2nd birthday
e-dealing celebrates its second birthday this month since being launched in March 2003.
LINZ General Manager Customer Services, Sharon Cottrell, says the last two years have seen increasing numbers of electronic title transactions.
"Nationally, market share has more than tripled within the last year, and in districts where trainers have gone in to assist customers we have achieved an 18 percent take up of possible e-dealing capable lodgements," Sharon says.
The development of specialist support capability through an 0800 ONLINE (665 463) customer service number, and endorsement from the New Zealand Law Society, the banking community, and the Institute of Legal Executives have also been positive features of the last two years, Sharon says.
This month until late June LINZ is targeting Auckland practitioners with information evenings, and providing a team of e-dealing specialists to the area to offer onsite training and support for new e-dealing customers.
"We expect the sessions to result in further uptake of the system, with Auckland firms benefiting from e-dealing in line with those in other parts of the country," Sharon says.
LINZ has begun discussions to determine the likely date for e-dealing to become mandatory, she said.
What they’re saying about e-dealing:
"Everyone I have spoken to who has used it [e-dealing] has agreed that it is a powerful system, and I am sure that once people understand what it can do for them, its use will grow." David Lang, 'The case for e-dealing', Canterbury District Law Society publication, Canterbury Tales, Feb 2005.
The NZLS appointment of a part-time consultant, Duncan Terris, "reflects the Property Law Section's view that all property lawyers should be using Landonline's facilities, particularly e-dealing, a stance the NZLS Board has endorsed. The PLS believes that not only does it make good business sense, but also that e-dealing and e-lodgement will inevitably become mandatory." LawTalk, Feb 2005.
e-dealing coming to an Auckland venue near you
A series of e-dealing information events for lawyers and support staff has begun in the Auckland area.
The meetings will introduce firms to e-dealing, discuss common misconceptions, and outline the on-site training and support LINZ offers to assist firms with the system. Firms will be able to meet other companies within their vicinity already using e-dealing and talk through areas of interest with trainers, such as the use of the Authority and Instruction form.
Previously only limited e-dealing training has been offered in Auckland, with a corresponding lower uptake of the system there than other regions. The current series of events aims to turn the situation around to enable Auckland set the pace for e-dealing uptake and take real advantage of the security, time and cost benefits the system offers.
The events will be held each month from now until late June at venues around Auckland.
Opening at 5pm with drinks and nibbles for a 5.30pm start, dates and venues for the remaining events are as follows:
| Auckland CBD West | 11 April |
| Auckland CBD East | 2 May |
| Auckland CBD Central | 16 May |
| Auckland West | 8 June |
| Auckland East | 9 June |
| Auckland South | 20 June |
Contact a LINZ e-dealing Enablement Representative via email on e-dealing@linz.govt.nz to sign up for any of the events or to identify your training needs.
DC Loader uptake onward and upward
Feedback from LINZ's customer support team shows that you're loving the ease of using the new DC Loader wizard.
Since LINZ launched the DC Loader wizard two months ago, it has been downloaded an average of 160 times a week. And the word from customers talking to LINZ customer support staff is all positive. Thanks for the great feedback.
If your Digital Certificate is coming up for renewal, or you are about to download one for the first time, access the wizard on the Landonline website.
Landonline
Favourite 'e-dealing' myths
From time to time, e-dealing myths poke their heads above the ramparts. Here's some perennial myths, busted:
e-dealing's not that secure, right? WRONG
To protect the integrity of state records, it is imperative security around Landonline is maintained. Landonline uses a multi-layered security system where individuals have a unique electronic identification Digital Certificate, as well as a unique password and pass phrase. Only licensed firms are issued with Digital Certificates, which include public and private encryption information keys, and only authorised individuals can certify and electronically sign documents.
The only discharge is a Discharge of Mortgage, right? WRONG
Virtually all types of discharge, release and withdrawal can be registered, all in the one e-dealing. Each of the following can be registered by e-dealing:
- Discharge of Mortgage
- Withdrawal of Caveat
- Discharge of Family Benefit Charge
- Discharge of Statutory Land Charge
- Withdrawal of Notice of Claim
- Discharge of Charging Order
- Discharge of Compensation Certificate
- Discharge of Encumbrance
- Partial discharges of all of the above.
The solicitor has to be involved on settlement day, right? WRONG
The solicitor only needs to be involved in the 'certifying and signing' of each instrument, and this can occur well before settlement.
As soon as the authorising document is received, the solicitor can 'certify and sign'. For example, this can be done as soon as the Discharge of Mortgage is received.
If any change is made to the electronic instrument after the solicitor has 'certified and signed', the certifications are automatically deleted to protect against any changes being made without the solicitor’s knowledge.
The same process occurs at settlement for e-dealing as paper. Namely, the same person who attends on settlement and hands over the paper instruments (or posts them) electronically 'releases' those documents on settlement.
There's no benefit if the other side can't 'e-deal', right? WRONG
There are a number of examples where e-dealing can be utilised even if the other side can't e-deal, for example:
- All discharges can be done by e-dealing if acting for a vendor – even if the other side is not e-dealing. (Refer Guideline Q of the NZLS Electronic Transaction Guidelines on www.lawyers.org.nz or www.propertylawyers.org.nz).
- A new mortgage on a purchase can be 'queued' behind the paper transfer as an e-dealing.
It's easy to make a mistake and accidentally register an instrument, right? WRONG
There are a number of inbuilt automated checks and balances that prevent registration until you are absolutely sure. Safeguards include:
- Nothing able to be registered unless the solicitor has 'certified and signed'.
- Registration cannot occur unless the instrument has been 'released' by you or the other side.
- A free 'pre-validation' check will confirm if the e-dealing will be successfully registered.
- A final check registration fees warning will display when the 'submit' button is pushed, giving a last opportunity to abort.
There's no cost saving, right? WRONG
- At $21 and $50 respectively, the costs of registration are currently less than half for e-dealing than paper.
- The saving of agency fees of $20-$25 is also a factor in providing cost estimates.
- Experienced users save time, for example by not having to type mortgages and abstracts.
- All internal client refinances and trust transfers can be done 'in-house' via e-dealing.
For more information visit www.landonline.govt.nz or why not try out the new e-dealing practice tool.
Location, Location, Location no problem for e-survey
LINZ General Manager Customer Services, Sharon Cottrell, presents Gordon Smith of Apex Surveying with a certificate marking the approved 1000th e-survey.
LINZ's 1000th e-survey was undertaken in Queenstown, digitally certified online by Queenstown Lakes District Council, processed in LINZ's Auckland office, and Approved as to Survey - all within four working days.
e-survey LT 344914 was submitted to LINZ on 19 January and Approved on 25 January, to the delight of surveyor Gordon Smith of Auckland firm, Apex Surveying.
"It was an urgent job and we were really pleased that we could get it approved so quickly. It really benefits the client," Gordon says.
Doing a survey on a Queenstown area from Auckland posed no problem, he said.
"We had one of the guys down in Queenstown and we were able to work on the job together."
He and technician Rob Hedgecock undertook e-survey training last November, following a LINZ presentation in Takapuna the previous May.
"We had Alan [Wilson] from Cadastre Ltd give us a two-day seminar at the end of November. Since then we've lodged two e-surveys and I'm working on about six [others] at the moment," Gordon said.
While it took him a little while to get his head around the new system, he found LINZ services, including the Landonline website and 0800 customer support line (0800 665 463) invaluable. He now aims to have all four surveyors on his staff e-survey capable by the end of the year.
LINZ General Manager Customer Services, Sharon Cottrell, says Gordon's experience underlines how e-survey now makes location incidental to getting the work done.
"Once lodged, a survey goes into a national system and because it's held electronically, it can be moved around to where resources are available to process it.
"In this case it was picked up and done in Auckland, but it could have been processed in any of the processing centres," she says.
Latin Land Line
South American Llama.
Logging on to Landonline from South America to certify and sign an e-dealing originating from his Palmerston North office, was no problem for solicitor Bruce Stewart when he attended a family wedding in Colombia last November.
Bruce has been a fan of e-dealing since its inception two years ago and finds e-dealing an invaluable tool in his sole practitioner conveyancing firm, Loughnans.
He's made great use of e-dealing anywhere, anytime flexibility, previously certifying and signing from Hayman Island on Australia's Gold Coast, from the United States, and now Colombia.
He says he used phone company Clear's IPASS system to log onto his laptop from Colombia and access his account back in New Zealand.
"The speed dial-up connection took a short time to get going, but once I accessed Landonline things were fine," Bruce says.
He was able to check the A and I documents and send them back to his office by email, then use his digital certificate to certify and sign the dealing in Landonline.
Bruce says as a sole practitioner the work keeps coming if he's away from the office, or the country, and e-dealing means he's able to work from wherever he is.
His firm was one of the first in the country to take up e-dealing, a move he says he has no regrets about.
"While initially there were logistical problems to be managed in the way the office worked, particularly moving from paper, once these were overcome it's proved to be a fantastic system," he says.
e-survey vendor training
If you're using LandXML-enabled survey software with Landonline e-survey, you should be experiencing some impressive time-savings when creating and lodging cadastral survey datasets.
e-survey is all about removing much of the manual data re-entry process and saving the time it takes to capture and lodge data.
With LandXML-enabled software, your survey data can be imported directly into Landonline: you create surveys without the need to re-key data into the Landonline capture screens. A software package that's compliant with LandXML can save up to 60 percent of the normal inputting time.
"But every software package is different and has different compliance with LandXML," says Jeff Needham, LINZ's Customer Strategy Senior Advisor. "Some editing is still needed post-importing into Landonline."
To help the five major survey software suppliers, LINZ will deliver training sessions during March 2005.
"We wanted to up-skill your vendors in e-survey functionality and data (enumerations) mapping," Jeff says.
"Focusing on each different software package, LINZ and the vendors will be looking at that package's compliance with Landonline (including import and export actions), and which data components need to be edited in Landonline when the LandXML file is loaded."
As a result of the training sessions, we’re looking forward to your vendors adding value to their customer service and training to the user.
Processing
New Survey Report Template a winner
At an estimated 90 percent uptake in just four months, the success of the new Survey Report Template placed on the LINZ website last October has exceeded expectations.
The template streamlines both paper and e-survey reporting processes and was developed by LINZ and practising surveyors for better, faster and cheaper reporting. It's the first stage of the Survey Handbook project, a major undertaking to help surveyors better understand compliance requirements and reduce the requisition rate.
While its use is not compulsory, the template sets out headings and key items LINZ looks for in survey reports. To encourage its use, LINZ has waived the requisition resubmission fee until June 2005 for those who fully and correctly use the template.
The website also provides additional reference information outlining situations where requisitions will be issued and the reasons why LINZ needs particular information. For ease of use, this information is categorised under each of the survey report headings.
LINZ prefers underlining to CAPS for title instruments
LINZ aims to record transferees and mortgagees on the title exactly as customers want them.
Most approved LINZ forms, including precedents in Land Titles New Zealand Forms and Practice and the recent regulations, request that surnames are underlined.
While some approved forms have been printed with 'Surnames underlined or in capitals', using capitals can cause confusion and allow names to be misrepresented on the title.
Some names, for example MacKenzie, could be recorded as MacKenzie or Mackenzie, or MacKay as Mackay.
As well, company names need to be shown with the correct spacing and punctuation, such as B.A.M Limited or B. A. M. Limited.
To minimise confusion, LINZ prefers transferees and mortgagees to be shown in your documents as they are to be shown on the title. We recommend underlining surnames and avoiding capitals, except placed exactly where you want them.
When in doubt, a covering letter is always welcome.
One advantage of lodging a routine transaction through e-dealing is the pre-validation function that will notify the user of any discrepancies between the registered proprietor and transferor or transferee and mortgagor. There are also quickcodes for mortgagees that ensure perfect spelling every time.
How to request a correction:
To request a correction, please complete the Record Correction Request form available on our website. Available in both pdf and Word format, the form should be emailed or faxed to the appropriate processing centre. Contact details are on the form.
To eliminate the risk of loss during transit, please do not return original instruments when requesting a correction. All corrections are verified directly from Landonline and copies of titles and instruments are not required. A complimentary search copy will be provided once the correction is complete.
Regulatory
Surveyor-General’s Rulings 2005/1 and 2005/2: Rule Dispensations
The Surveyor-General's Rulings relate to the application and implementation of rules, standards and other statutory requirements. They are published on the Surveyor-General's Rulings and Advisory Notes page of the LINZ website.
Two recent Rulings 2005/1 and 2005/2 relate to dispensations granted in accordance with Rule 44, Surveyor-General's Rules for Cadastral Survey 2002/2.
Surveyor-General's Ruling 2005/1, "Dispensation to use Parcel Diagrams", describes particular cases where a dispensation can be granted, by virtue of the ruling, to use a parcel diagram to depict "balance parcels".
Surveyor-Generals Ruling 2005/2, "Dispensation from Boundary Monumentation", describes particular cases where a dispensation can be granted, by virtue of the ruling, for boundary angles to remain un-monumented.
It will not be necessary to submit an application for dispensation in cases where the criteria outlined in the rulings are met.
Where the surveyor considers that a dispensation is appropriate, in a case that does not meet the criteria in the ruling, they can seek a dispensation from the Surveyor-General or his delegate pursuant to Rule 44, Surveyor-General's Rules for Cadastral Survey 2002/2.
Surveyors must fully document in their survey report the reasons and authority for any dispensation, whether it is by virtue of a Surveyor-General's Ruling or a specific dispensation from the Surveyor-General or his delegate. In the latter case the report should also quote the Landonline Request reference number for the dispensation.
Hot Topics
Survey fee calculators updated
New survey fee calculators are available on the LINZ website. The calculators now work out both manual and e-survey fees, with information on any savings accessed by completing an e-survey. As before, there is a web-based as well as a downloadable Excel version.
The calculators are available on the LINZ website by following the Survey Fee Calculator link
Procedure for requesting a credit
From time to time LINZ customers may need to request a credit, for instance following incorrect charges to an invoice, printing problems, or incorrect Digital Certificate or annual maintenance fee charges.
Here's a step-by-step method for requesting a credit:
If you've received an incorrect invoice:
- Circle the item and dollar amount on the invoice and write the reason for the credit on the invoice
- If there is more than one item, total the amount to be credited and write the amount and the reason for the credit on the invoice
- Fax or post the invoice to LINZ (details below).
If the charge has already been paid on lodgement:
- Include the cheque number and the cheque amount on the invoice, as well as the date the cheque was presented
- Post the invoice to LINZ (details below) with the payment. The invoice can be short paid, as long as an explanation of the short payment is included.
If you have received a fees report, but no invoice:
- Circle the duplicates on the fees report
- Write a brief explanation of the reason for the credit request on the fees report, and fax - preferably on the same day - or post, to LINZ (details below)
If you receive electronic invoices:
- Print the invoice
- Circle the item and dollar amount on the invoice and write the reason for the credit on the invoice
- If there is more than one item, total the amount to be credited and write the amount on the invoice, as well as the reason for the credit
- Fax or post the invoice to LINZ (details below).
LINZ contact details:
- LINZ fax number: 04 460 0161
- LINZ Postal Address: LINZ Customer Support, National Office, Lambton House, 160 Lambton Quay, or Private Box 5501, Wellington.
See also the LINZ fact sheet Procedure for Requesting a Credit (pdf 40.6KB) on the Landonline Fees & Charges section of the LINZ website.
