Writing a Will yourself may seem tempting, but we often see badly written ones which can have a devasting effect on somebody’s estate. We have collated some common pitfalls of what could go wrong.
- The Will may not be signed correctly causing it to be invalid.
- If you have chosen to not include someone in your Will who perhaps may have had an expectation to inherit from you then there will be a higher chance of them challenging the validity of your will and possibly being successful.
- If the Will is partly defective then not only could it be invalid but your estate could incur high legal fees to rectify these issues.
- The Will may not include all of your assets which means it will have to be administered in two separate parts.
- The wording my not be clear leading to ambiguity of what your intentions were.
- It could be more likely that your Will could be interfered with and altered without your knowledge.
Not only will the above be more expensive to put right but it may also mean the administration your estate will take longer and add to the emotional distress of your loved ones who are already grieving.
Reasons why you should ask Oliver & Co to help draft your Will
We don’t just draft a standard document here at Oliver & Co we take the time to get to know each and every one of our clients to ensure we have a full picture of their circumstances and affairs. We may ask for information you have not considered or ask you to think about things you did not realise were relevant to drafting a Will.
We can provide guidance on inheritance tax planning and make sure your affairs are in as strong a position as they can be should there be any possible claims by unhappy family members.
We will also store your Will in our safe and register it on the Certainty Will Register free of charge. Keeping your Will in our safe will ensure it does not get damaged or lost.
The cost of a properly drafted Will is small compared to what could go wrong if there are mistakes.
If you would like to make a will please call us 01244 312306 to speak to one of our team who will be happy to help.
