Re-signing documents: what are the risks for companies and how to avoid them

Employees of companies that work with documents are often forced to make changes to them. In business practice, it is common to have to revoke, correct, and re-sign documents that have already been signed. This happens due to errors, inconsistencies in documents, or changes in conditions.

Re-signing documents is one of the least obvious but most common problems in the daily activities of companies. According to Vchasno.ODE, from April 2024 to May 2025, 57 762 users rejected documents for signing, including almost 20,000 accountants.

Vchasno, in collaboration with YouControl, analyzed the business sectors in which electronic documents are most often re-signed. This occurs most frequently in wholesale trade (14.6%), transport and logistics (7.8%), and agriculture (7.4%).

Formally, re-signing is just a correction of inaccuracies or errors in a document. But in practice, it is a delay that leads to the re-involvement of several specialists, loss of time, and reduced efficiency of business processes.

What threats can re-signing documents pose to companies? How can this be avoided? We will tell you in this article.

What are the risks of re-signing documents?

Withdrawing and re-signing documents can have a number of negative consequences for various departments within a company. Let’s take a closer look at them.

📉 Risks for commercial directors

The commercial director is responsible for revenue and customer relations. Any delay or error in documents is a direct threat to the fulfillment of the sales plan.

• Failed deals and delayed sales. The re-signing process slows down the closing of a deal. A customer who was already ready to sign a contract may begin to have doubts or receive a more favorable offer from competitors during this time.
• Loss of customer trust. Requesting to re-sign a document undermines the company’s image as a reliable and organized partner. The customer may wonder: if the company cannot draw up a contract correctly, will it be able to provide quality service or deliver goods?
• Deterioration of the terms of the agreement. While the partners are figuring out which version of the document is correct, the initial agreements may become irrelevant. The customer may use this situation to get an additional discount or change terms that are unfavorable to them.

💸 Risks for accounting

Most of the risks associated with re-signing are related to accounting in the company. It is accountants who work with primary documents, on the basis of which tax reports are formed.

• Tax penalties. An incorrectly executed primary document (act, expense invoice) is grounds for the State Tax Service not to recognize a business transaction. This threatens the removal of the VAT tax credit, additional income tax charges, and significant penalties during an audit.
• Risk of double payment. If two versions of an invoice or act are submitted to the accounting department and there is no clear control, there is a high probability that the payment will be made twice.
• Chaos in primary documents. Confusion with versions creates disorder in the archive and accounting system. During an audit or tax inspection, it becomes extremely difficult to find the correct, legally valid document, which in itself arouses suspicion among the regulatory authorities.

💼 Risks for the legal department

Lawyers are responsible for the legal security of the company. The existence of several versions of a signed document poses the following threats to them.

• Risk of the contract being declared invalid. If there are two or more signed versions of the contract with different terms and conditions, this creates the risk of lawsuits. As a result, the court may declare the contract invalid.
• Increased workload. Instead of focusing on strategic tasks, lawyers are forced to spend time re-reading, approving, and analyzing the risks of documents that should already be in the archive.
• Liability for damages. If a company suffers financial losses because it performed its obligations under the wrong version of the contract, the liability (at least internally) may fall on the legal department, which was responsible for ensuring the accuracy of the final document.

🛒 Risks for procurement departments

For procurement specialists, the main thing is to provide the company with the necessary goods or services on time and on favorable terms. Re-signing disrupts this process.

• Disruption of supply. While the contract with the supplier is being re-signed, the goods will not be shipped and the service will not be provided. This leads to production downtime, project delays, and failure to meet obligations to customers.
• Loss of favorable terms. A supplier who has fixed the price in the first version of the contract may refuse to honor it during re-signing, citing changes in exchange rates, rising raw material prices, etc. The company risks losing a favorable offer.
• Receipt of unsuitable goods. If there was an error in the specification (item number, model, quantity) and the purchase has already begun based on the incorrect version, the company risks receiving the wrong goods. This leads to additional costs for returns, storage, and ordering a new batch.

Why companies re-sign documents

Re-signing documents is a sign of deeper processes within a business organization: from the level of internal control to the quality of communication between departments. Awareness of these patterns is the first step toward reducing errors, lowering costs, and increasing the efficiency of accountants.

Most often, companies re-sign documents for the following reasons:

• Human factor. The most common reason for re-signing is carelessness. For example, a manager may specify the wrong quantity of goods, an accountant may make a mistake in the details, or a lawyer may overlook an outdated clause in a contract.
• Paper document flow. When different versions of documents are stored on computers, it becomes difficult to understand which version is the final one. As a result, employees often send a draft for signature instead of the agreed version.
• Incorrect system integration. Sometimes companies use multiple programs to create, approve, and store documents. If these systems do not interact well with each other, data can be lost or distorted during transfer.

How much do mistakes cost companies?

Each deviation means returning a document for revision, which requires re-engaging the responsible specialist. This means additional time and resource costs.

In paper form, re-signing can take days or even weeks. In electronic format, it takes just a few clicks. And with large volumes of document flow, this difference is critical.

The average cost of signing a single paper document can reach up to 300 UAH. This includes printing, logistics, and the working time of the responsible specialist. With each re-signing, these costs increase. For companies that send hundreds or thousands of documents every month, this translates into tens of thousands of hryvnia in additional costs.

For comparison: the cost of electronically signing one document in the Vchasno.ODE service is 7.2 UAH. But the main advantage is not the price. It is speed, control, and convenience. You can approve, sign, or send an electronic document anywhere, anytime.

The amount of savings a company gets from switching to electronic document management depends on the company’s structure and the number of documents. The cost calculator will help you accurately calculate the amount of savings.

How to avoid re-signing documents using the Vchasno.ODE service

Electronic document management solves the problem of re-signing documents. The processes of approving and signing documents in ODE services are automated. The system allows you to see the status of a document, the history of changes, and the actions of the counterparty in real time. Errors can be corrected online without reprinting the document. This saves accountants time that can be spent on other tasks instead of routine paperwork.

Simplifying daily routines is one of the significant effects of digitalization. Where accountants used to spend 2-3 hours preparing documents, now 5-10 minutes is enough.

The Vchasno.ODE service provides companies with transparent, controlled, and secure document flow. It minimizes the risks associated with re-signing documents thanks to the following features:

• Registration of all signatures in the system. Each electronic signature affixed to a document is recorded with the exact time. You always know who signed the document and when.
• Document status control. The service shows you the current status of each document («sent», «signed», «requires signature», «rejected»).
• Automatic blocking of changes. Once all parties have signed the document, it becomes legally binding. It is impossible to make changes to it. This guarantees the integrity and immutability of the final version.
• Legal validity of electronic signatures and compliance with legislation. Documents signed in Vchasno.ODE service using an electronic signature are originals and have full legal force in accordance with the Laws of Ukraine «On Electronic Documents and Electronic Document Management» and «On Electronic Trust Services». They are accepted by the tax service, courts, and other state bodies.

Re-signing documents is an expensive and risky process that is a direct consequence of outdated paper document management. Every mistake costs the company real money, undermines the trust of partners, and creates chaos in internal processes.

Switching to electronic document management with Vchasno.ODE protects your company from legal, financial, and reputational risks. You gain complete control over your documents and minimize the number of cases where a document needs to be signed.