Simple Will

DullGreyGuy

eastcorkram said:

YorksLass said:

Another vote for Co-op Legal Services.  DH and I did simple mirror Wills with them last year, over the phone, at a joint cost of £245 with free storage.  

How does that work over the phone , with regards to things being witnessed and signed? 

They send it, you arrange for it to be signed and witnessed and then return it to them.

eastcorkram

OP here again, many months on! 
I did eventually get a will written. It was sent to me in March. All that needed doing was for me to sign it, with it being witnessed, and returned. 

A few days after receiving it, I was in hospital, and then required surgery for cancer. Then spent many weeks recovering etc. I was told there was no time limit in getting it signed, so it kind of got put on the back burner. 

Today, I got a letter saying I need to get it signed and returned in the next 21 days. Trouble is, I've no idea who to get to witness the signature. May well sound weird, but I just don't know anyone. I would have just got a couple of people at work to do it, but I retired at Christmas, and work is a 320 mile trip.

I tried a couple of local solicitors, and I was happy to pay them to witness it, but they won't do it. Does anyone have any ideas of who could do it? Short of stopping two strangers in the street. 

Emmia

eastcorkram said:

OP here again, many months on! 
I did eventually get a will written. It was sent to me in March. All that needed doing was for me to sign it, with it being witnessed, and returned. 

A few days after receiving it, I was in hospital, and then required surgery for cancer. Then spent many weeks recovering etc. I was told there was no time limit in getting it signed, so it kind of got put on the back burner. 

Today, I got a letter saying I need to get it signed and returned in the next 21 days. Trouble is, I've no idea who to get to witness the signature. May well sound weird, but I just don't know anyone. I would have just got a couple of people at work to do it, but I retired at Christmas, and work is a 320 mile trip.

I tried a couple of local solicitors, and I was happy to pay them to witness it, but they won't do it. Does anyone have any ideas of who could do it? Short of stopping two strangers in the street. 

If you get it written at a solicitors, then often their employees will witness you signing it. That's how mine was done both times. Where did you get your will done?

Do you have any neighbours you could ask?

Savvy_Sue

The witnesses don't need to know you, so the idea of asking strangers in the street is not impossible. 

However, that might be daunting, so another possibility would be to go out for coffee, and approach a friendly looking pair on another table.

They don't have to read the will. They don't have to know who you are. They are signing to say that they have seen you sign the will. They watch you sign. They sign. There will (should!) be spaces for whatever other information is needed: date on which this happened, names printed as well as signatures, addresses of witnesses, etc.

Emmia said:

eastcorkram said:

OP here again, many months on! 
I did eventually get a will written. It was sent to me in March. All that needed doing was for me to sign it, with it being witnessed, and returned. 

A few days after receiving it, I was in hospital, and then required surgery for cancer. Then spent many weeks recovering etc. I was told there was no time limit in getting it signed, so it kind of got put on the back burner. 

Today, I got a letter saying I need to get it signed and returned in the next 21 days. Trouble is, I've no idea who to get to witness the signature. May well sound weird, but I just don't know anyone. I would have just got a couple of people at work to do it, but I retired at Christmas, and work is a 320 mile trip.

I tried a couple of local solicitors, and I was happy to pay them to witness it, but they won't do it. Does anyone have any ideas of who could do it? Short of stopping two strangers in the street. 

If you get it written at a solicitors, then often their employees will witness you signing it. That's how mine was done both times. Where did you get your will done?

Do you have any neighbours you could ask?

Likewise, I've found solicitors usually get staff in to watch you sign. 

Neighbours is another option.

eastcorkram

Emmia said:

eastcorkram said:

OP here again, many months on! 
I did eventually get a will written. It was sent to me in March. All that needed doing was for me to sign it, with it being witnessed, and returned. 

A few days after receiving it, I was in hospital, and then required surgery for cancer. Then spent many weeks recovering etc. I was told there was no time limit in getting it signed, so it kind of got put on the back burner. 

Today, I got a letter saying I need to get it signed and returned in the next 21 days. Trouble is, I've no idea who to get to witness the signature. May well sound weird, but I just don't know anyone. I would have just got a couple of people at work to do it, but I retired at Christmas, and work is a 320 mile trip.

I tried a couple of local solicitors, and I was happy to pay them to witness it, but they won't do it. Does anyone have any ideas of who could do it? Short of stopping two strangers in the street. 

If you get it written at a solicitors, then often their employees will witness you signing it. That's how mine was done both times. Where did you get your will done?

Do you have any neighbours you could ask?

It was drawn up by co op legal services. I suppose neighbours is an option, but despite being in this house for 15 years, I don't know them on either side. Just nodding terms. 

 So that'll give you an idea of how much social contact I have with people! 

I also think it seems strange, as I'm not sure if I would  want to sign a legal document myself without having read what it is first. 

Spendless

Id ask your neighbours.

Our solicitors did exactly the same thing - twice! We had reason to remove a beneficary in our disaster scenario within a year of first making wills, so went back to them to amend it. 

I wasnt impressed we weren't called in to the office to sign. If we'd died before getting it witnessed then we'd have died intestate and pointless paying for wills! 

As and when we update, we'll be going elsewhere and that will be a question I ask upfront.

Our neighbours signed ours. They didnt read what was in it. 

Emmia

eastcorkram said:

Emmia said:

eastcorkram said:

OP here again, many months on! 
I did eventually get a will written. It was sent to me in March. All that needed doing was for me to sign it, with it being witnessed, and returned. 

A few days after receiving it, I was in hospital, and then required surgery for cancer. Then spent many weeks recovering etc. I was told there was no time limit in getting it signed, so it kind of got put on the back burner. 

Today, I got a letter saying I need to get it signed and returned in the next 21 days. Trouble is, I've no idea who to get to witness the signature. May well sound weird, but I just don't know anyone. I would have just got a couple of people at work to do it, but I retired at Christmas, and work is a 320 mile trip.

I tried a couple of local solicitors, and I was happy to pay them to witness it, but they won't do it. Does anyone have any ideas of who could do it? Short of stopping two strangers in the street. 

If you get it written at a solicitors, then often their employees will witness you signing it. That's how mine was done both times. Where did you get your will done?

Do you have any neighbours you could ask?

It was drawn up by co op legal services. I suppose neighbours is an option, but despite being in this house for 15 years, I don't know them on either side. Just nodding terms. 

 So that'll give you an idea of how much social contact I have with people! 

I also think it seems strange, as I'm not sure if I would  want to sign a legal document myself without having read what it is first. 

Ok so you used a will writer, despite the fact you must have known when you engaged them that the  witnessing part would be a problem.

A solicitor is never going to let their staff witness a legal document they have not prepared.

Perhaps you need to abandon this co op document, and go to a local solicitor where it can be witnessed as part of the service 

Alternatively maybe it's time to introduce yourself to your neighbours?

RAS

Maybe check with your GP service if they will witness the signature? Or know who can (local hospice or Macmillan services?)

And given your health issues, please sort out the POA. I appreciate that it's even more difficult than getting the signature witnessed by do you want decisions made by strangers? 

user1977

RAS said:

do you want decisions made by strangers? 

It sounds like everyone in the OP's life is a stranger!

eastcorkram

RAS said:

Maybe check with your GP service if they will witness the signature? Or know who can (local hospice or Macmillan services?)

And given your health issues, please sort out the POA. I appreciate that it's even more difficult than getting the signature witnessed by do you want decisions made by strangers? 

My health issue has nothing to do with mental capacity.