Instagram and Facebook are now awash with ads promoting the fact you could become a Scottish Lord or Lady. It sounds cool, but are Established Titles real? Despite the social media influencers proclaiming how great it is to be known as a Lord or Lady, these things aren’t worth the disk space the digital file will take up on your computer.
Realistically, a female body inspector/FBI badge from Spencer’s is as legitimate as anything Established Titles is selling. That’s important to understand since this company wants you to fork over $49.95 for something that is essentially make believe. You’d be hard pressed to Brewster’s Millions $50 at Spencer’s and all their stuff is real.
Sure, Established Titles are claiming to sell you a tiny plot of land in Scotland which gives you the right to call yourself a Lord or Lady as well as a digital certificate. And for only $30 extra, you can even get a printed certificate. To quote Daryl from The Office, “This is shenanigans, foolishness, Nerf-ball.”
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Why are Established Titles not real?
Unfortunately, acquiring a one square meter plot of land in some Scottish backwater isn’t enough to have a title of nobility bestowed upon you. Believe it or not, Scotland actually has a court dedicated to overseeing all issues of heraldry which covers things like specific coat of arms usage and titles.
It may seem silly, but the Scottish, and British for that matter, take this stuff really seriously. Anyway, it is known as The Court of the Lord Lyon and it ruled pretty emphatically that programs like Established Titles are not real.
The court found that titles, including Lady or Lord, aren’t really names, but instead a description of people living on specific estates. Anyone owning a souvenir land plot, apartment or other residential property have no right to use these titles.
You can read more from the Law Society of Scotland on why Established Titles aren’t real here.
As for that $49.95 you’re spending on land, well you’re not even getting that either. The Land Registration (Scotland) Act 2012 clearly states that souvenir plots can’t be registered with the Land Register of Scotland which means you don’t actually legally own the land. In fact, the plot you have “bought” can be sold to other people as well since it’s not registered.
Of course, Established Titles claims not to do this and fair play to them. But they are also trying to sell you something that has no real value so it does kind of feel like a scam.
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You can call yourself whatever you want
Established Titles has countless of positive reviews and plenty of people on social media stumping for their nonsense product, but it’s not hard for scammers to do this. These people all talk about how cool it is to call themselves a Lord or Lady which is fine. Some even mention being treated better on flights and such when using their title.
But here’s the thing. You can give yourself whatever the hell title you want anyway. Is anyone actually going to ask for proof of Lordship? It’s highly unlikely. Could you imagine one of the uninterested members of a check-in crew asking to see land ownership records to prove you really are, in fact, a Lord?
Yeah, me neither. Once I accidentally select Dr. as my title for a flight. No one asked to see a degree or any credentials. If you really want to be known as a Lord or Lady, you can do without buying a phony plot of land in Scotland. Just start filling in forms with Lord as your title and save yourself the $49.95. You could even print out a fake certificate if you felt so inclined.
Are Established Titles real? No. And even if they were, you could literally call yourself a Lady or Lord anyway. It’s not like anyone outside of Scotland would notice or care.
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