Will Aid: Get a free will in November

Former_MSE_Archna

Update Nov 09

Will Aid is now part of the Free and Cheap Wills guide. As this discussion is from 2008 some of the earlier discussion may be out of date.

What is WillAid?

During the month of November many solicitors across the country will draft you a will at no charge through a scheme called WillAid in return they will ask you to make a donation to charity.

This isn't forced and there's no fixed price, but £75 is suggested for a single will or £110 for a pair of wills. If afford it then this is a very good price, and charities benefit so do donate. Yet if you can't, pay what you can... there is NO requirement to donate.

IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT HOW MUCH TO PAY

The whole purpose of WillAid is to raise as much money as possible for charity and to persuade people to get around to writing a proper will, and at the suggested £75 it's actually cheap compared to what the actual fee would be.

If you cannot afford the full amount, don't blunder straight in and say "I will only donate £20 is that ok?"

Some oversubscribed solicitors may take umbridge. Instead WillAid itself suggests you phone the solicitor and explain you want to make an appointment through the WillAid scheme without asking about the cost - tell it you'll make a donation via the WillAid website and bring the receipt. That should be fine.

Why would a solicitor do it for free?

First and foremost like many other individuals, to support charity. However, it's also a good way of encouraging people who have never been into a solicitor's office, and they may well gain new clients for other things in the long run because of it.

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willaid_press_officer

Can I just point out that you do not have to be over 50 to make a Will with Will Aid?
Over 50s are more than welcome but any adult of any age can make their Will with a Will Aid solicitor, provided the solicitor has enough appointments available.

trixybess

Hi if you pay through will aid you get an email which you have to print and take with you which does say how much you donated I found that after I had my appointment a letter came in the post about 2 weeks later from will aid thanking me for my donation with no amount which I wished they had sent me before I had the appointment as I was realy embarassed as the solicitor could see how much I had donated and yes I am also not over 50 lol

toshkininny

Hi, how much does an average priced will normally cost if these are good prices please?

Thanks.

andyroberts1967

I've just contacted my local solicitor who's in this scheme to arrange an appointment to do this, and I await their reply. It's one of those things that one keeps putting off, so this is a good opportunity to get our affairs in order. Thanks to the OP for this great scheme!

whitewing

Well, I've just put an enquiry thro the willaid website for my local solicitor too, so we'll wait and see.

toshkininny

sorry another question. If you are writing a will with your other half (who you are not married to) do you need to draw up two wills, or can you have a single joint will?

Thanks.

dunramblin

is this just a draft a will service ? Do they keep it in a safe place and be the executors, etc ?

joshm_2

Prices vary and it depends how complicated the will needs to be. I got quotes from about 5 local solicitors and prices varied between 100 and 300 per will plus VAT.

joshm_2

toshkininny wrote: »

sorry another question. If you are writing a will with your other half (who you are not married to) do you need to draw up two wills, or can you have a single joint will?

Thanks.

Two wills. If you are not married then it's probably all the more important to have a will at hand should the worst happen since the surviving partner will not be entitled to anything.

joshm_2

dunramblin wrote: »

is this just a draft a will service ? Do they keep it in a safe place and be the executors, etc ?

Suspect this is just the writing service. Your solicitor will most likely charge if you ask them to be listed as executor. They will keep a copy on record, I would expect, but again may charge if asked to (re)produce? Not sure about that one though.