Need will writing advice...

tanith

I just wonder if anyone has used a will writing service and can recommend one that is trustworthy , reliable and that you felt comfortable with?
I have been asked by an elderly friend to help her find someone to write her will... I do not want to put her on to a rip-off company. I have read up a little about it and find that its not always necessary to have a solicitor who would tend to be much more expensive( she has little money and even £100 is a lot to her) but the will writing companies websites all seem a bit plastic and over the top so I am really looking for recommendations. They will need to call at the house as she is almost housebound and alone... one difficulty is she wants me to be executor and I just know her daughter is going to object strongly but I feel my loyalty should be to my friend regardless of the families feelings... her daughter has told her that there is no need for a will as everything will come to her (the daughter) and her sibling anyway, this may indeed be so .. but my friend feels that her choices will be taken away if she does not make a will.
She has just the house she lives in and its contents....
Please do not try to sell me on a particular site that you have a vested interest in I just want someone who has had personal experience with this type of thing and feeling comfortable and knowing they are trustworthy and honest is my main priority...

thanks

margaretclare

Have a look at the thread below that I started - about EPA between spouses. It turns out that the best way to go about it (for us anyway) is to get it done properly by a solicitor.

I first met our family solicitor when I was working in a nursing home - she was visiting to make a will for one of the residents and I acted as witness of the signature. Most family solicitors know that not everyone can get out to get to their offices and will make home visits. The CAB should have a list of those who will.

This lady's daughter says that 'everything will come to her anyway, no need for a will'. Well, maybe. But suppose the lady wants to leave something to someone else as well as the daughter? Or maybe she DOESN'T want to leave it to the daughter - maybe she wants to leave to grandchildren instead? The daughter is making a lot of assumptions which could be unjustified. In addition, it's a good idea to specify your funeral wishes in advance.

An executor should be someone who can act impartially, carry out the deceased person's wishes without regard to what the daughter may or may not like. I think from what you say, your friend 'feels that her choices will be taken away if she doesn't make a will' - yes, I can understand that feeling! It's just the kind of reason why DH and I don't want any other family members involved in our wills or EPA.

I would recommend a proper solicitor!

Best wishes

Margaret

shykins

from what i have seen the will writing companies dont charge much less then a solicitor anyways and iwould always advise using a solicitor especially if theres any likelihood of confusion

u can sometimes get a will done for free at certain times of the year thru age concern so thats worth looking at and get some quotes from local solicitors u may be surprised

x

greyteam1959

Couple of points.....
1)
Always always use a local solicitor....ask around friends and neighbours who they have used....and they are not as expensive as they seem and they will come to her house. Ask how much they will charge.....a reputable company will always tell you up front.
2)
She 'only owns her house and contents'....well that might be £150 000 at very minimum so its actually a lot of money.
3)
Its none of her daughters business who is an executor of her mothers will.
4)
I would not touch the will writting companies online with a long long barge pole

amy

my friend told me about about a charity called will aid its once a year and some solicitors will write the will for a donation to the charity instead of for a fee i'm not sure when it is this year but if you google it you might find a website thats how i done mine!!

Charis

My late husband and I had mirror wills leaving everything to the surviving spouse. It wasn't until he died that I realised that the solicitor charged us £450 to administer the will, in addition to the charges we had already paid. That was thirteen years ago so I can't remember if she had appointed herself an executor although I know my husband's son was named.

The odd thing is that there is no procedure to check that the executor carries out the deceased person's wishes. If anything is left to a minor it could be long gone by the time the child is old enough to realise (if ever). More than one relative in our family who would have reasonably been expected to have left a will was apparently intestate. One such was my late father in law, an accountant.

To make sure the wishes of the deceased are carried out it is imperative to have as the executor the person knew they could trust and not to involve a bank or solicitor as executor unless prepared for some hefty extra charges. Also there should be more than one copy of the will left with trusted friends, because executors may die before the deceased.

missile

Not all solicitors over charge, my solicitor did ours for free.

I guess your friend must have used a solicitor to buy her house. In the absence of any other local knowledge that might be a good one to use?
Ask for a written quote including how much they would charge as executors.

£450 to administer the will might be money well spent, if it avoids arguements between you and her daughter?

margaretclare

missile wrote: »

£450 to administer the will might be money well spent, if it avoids arguments between you and her daughter?

This is very true. It sounds as if the lady herself is aware, suspects that there could be problems, that the daughter assumes that everything will come to her (wishful thinking?) Someone completely impartial, like a family solicitor, is in a much stronger position than a friend, who could easily be over-ridden by this daughter. I can hear it now 'Well, she was my mother, you're only a friend, I have a right to inherit, you have no rights at all....'

This is the reason why we haven't involved any close family members as executors of our wills or second attorneys of our EPA. It's particularly important because some of the beneficiaries under our wills are step-grandchildren. Everyone should do their best to ensure that what they wish for will happen, otherwise there is no point at all.

Margaret

missile

Yes, reading between the lines, it sounds like a family dispute over the deceased grave is likely. What a shame people can be so greedy about other peoples money.

Unfortunately the daughter and her sibling will indeed inherit everything in the absence of a will. I know some, who talk openly about their plans to spend their inheritance. Let's hope OP encourages her to make a will before these two gold diggers declare her unfit and apply for power of attorney :eek:

Jake'sGran

If the will is a simple one I would run a form off from the Internet and do it myself, e.g. if the sum involved was just a few thousand and being left to one or two people only. I would do the same for a married couple if they wanted mirror wills which didn't involve a fortune. They must be witnessed properly by two people who are not beneficiaries. If you have a look at one of the Will form sites you will see that the forms are quite straightforward.

If your friend does use a solicitor advise her not to have him/her as an executor.

We have just made our wills and have used a solicitor but only because there could have been a problem with Inheritance Tax. It cost just over £200 for the two wills which I thought was very reasonable considering they were quite detailed.

ceewash

What is a reasonable price to pay for a will?