Case Study: Will Writing - Choose a Company Carefully

An elderly married couple were on the verge of leaving themselves nothing after a botched Will writing experience.

After going to a company describing themselves as ‘Will distributors’, the couple were presented with a legally binding document that ensured provision for their four children, but nothing for the surviving spouse.

An error only picked up by a call to Winn Solicitors, this is a cautionary tale of using experienced legal professionals, like ourselves, to support you through an important future planning process.

What happened?

Opting for a firm calling themselves ‘Will distributors’, the couple had details taken from them by the Will distributors, who then passed on this information to a panel solicitor to draft the document. At no point did the solicitor visit or even call the clients. With an eight-week delay between the instructions being taken and receipt of the Wills to sign, there were several red flags to this process.

The couple struggled to find someone suitable to witness their signatures and so came to Winn Solicitors for support with this.

What was found?

After checking the Will, significant errors were discovered, including their estate being shared with their children and leaving nothing to the surviving spouse, which could have caused financial difficulty for their partner. Caused by an inaccurate recording of details, the couple would have been unaware of this until the time came to rely on the document itself.

What happened next?

After discovering this fact, they abandoned the original Will and set about starting the process once more with Winns and their dedicated team of Wills, Probate and Trusts specialists. The team quickly acted upon instruction and drafted a comprehensive and accurate Will before sending it to the clients with an accompanying commentary document to help them understand all technical terms used within the document.

With this clear understanding, the couple were able to read over and agree to the contents before getting their signatures witnessed.

They now have the peace of mind knowing exactly what will happen to their estate when they die and that their wishes will be acted upon.

What to watch out for

Relying on a company to conduct this process is entirely natural. However, in our experience, it is always best to go with a trained and trusted legal team that specialises in Will writing, like Winn Solicitors.

In this case study, the fact there were two companies involved was a red flag, as was the delay between instruction and the production of a Will. Indeed, the notion that a solicitor from a different firm didn’t even meet or speak to the clients but still wrote the Will is another area of concern.

Our team is ready to help

If you need to prepare a Will or are in the process of doing so and have any concerns or queries, call the team at Winns for a no-obligation chat about your circumstances. Our team provides a diligent, compassionate, and proactive client care offering, preparing a Will that wholly reflects your wishes.

For peace of mind tomorrow, make the call to Winns today.

Call now

Share this article