Inquiry commissioned on behalf of the Fellowship of Professional Will Writers and Probate Practitioners and printed lately shows an alarming 67% of consumers think that all will writers are solicitors. They definitely are not.
What’s worse, 82% of the clients are under the opinion that Will Writers have proper education and aptitude. Corrupt will writers can easily take advantage of unsuspecting clients who are left with no hope for recompense.One such Will Writer, who was not a solicitor, was jailed for 8 years at Bristol Crown Court in October last year. He advertised himself as a financial adviser with a "home wills" business.
He victimized widows who had no children, and saw to it he was made an facilitator in their Wills. This enabled him to swindle the estates of 3 pensioners to the value of £800,000. The monies, which the pensioners had appropriated for charities and caring for the sick was siphoned off by the Will Writing fraudster.lawyers who write Wills are governed by the strict regulations of the Solicitors Regulation Authority and must have a borderline of £2,000,000 insurance to compensate any losses. The cost which will be incurred by having your will drawn by a solicitor will depend on how complicated your last requests are. It is possible to have Wills done on line with lawyers, Wills through the mail, or a complicated bespoke Will with Inheritance Tax advice as well.
There was another case wherein the entire estate went to the wife, leaving the mother and the son stripped, simply because the man neglected to keep his will up to date.
What may have appeared to be a direct understanding in this case, between a husband and wife who were breaking up, had dire consequences for the family. The lesson of the story is to check with the solicitor who made your Will, that there are no pitfalls or prospective troubles in what you try to attain.
Constantly ask for your solicitor’s counsel when making alterations in your will. Most solicitors would not make a charge for general advice of this nature, so there really is no reason in not asking. The reality is that with some simple provision you could relieve your loved ones from the involuntarily, albeit innocent, financial repercussions of your inaction. Solicitors have expended many years establishing up a huge bank of confidence with the populace. Are you willing to take a chance having your will done by a person other than your solicitor?