3 August 2023
Williamsons Solicitors often sees problematic wills created by unregulated will-writing companies, which do not accurately reflect a person’s wishes leading to complications when the person who has made the will dies.
This week the Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) have launched an investigation into the unregulated legal service markets focusing on will-writing and pre-paid probate services. There are about 208,000 unregulated providers in England and Wales which the Solicitors Regulation Authority (the governing body for Solicitors) estimates is 6-8% of the legal services market.
The CMA have received various complaints regarding unregulated will-writing services including customers being misled over costs and unfair terms being automatically included such as appointing unregulated firms as Executors which leads to substantial payments from an Estate to deal with the administration when someone has died. Sadly, it is often the case that unregulated companies advertise an extremely low initial fee for advice and that they do not explain that the final cost can increase dramatically.
Pre-paid probate plans are also now being offered by such companies. This is where someone pays a fee in advance during their lifetime in the hope that families do not need to pay anything when they have died. Unfortunately, pressure-selling techniques are often used on elderly and vulnerable people and there is a lack of transparency as to what costs are actually covered meaning the plans to not always service their purpose. As a consequence, bereaved relatives are left unable to settle additional bills.
Unregulated will-writing companies sometimes have hidden fees such as ongoing storage costs even though the wills are not always stored correctly and safely. By way of example, wills have previously been found abandoned in a barn in Somerset and left on a pavement outside of other will-writing companies.
As will-writing companies are unregulated this leaves individuals open to a higher risk when things go wrong, which is often not known until it is too late as someone has died. Families then must deal with these issues when it is already a difficult time for them.
Whilst there are some capable unregulated will-writers it is important that when making a will that you are aware of the differences between regulated and unregulated will-drafters and ensure that your selected will-drafter holds a code of ethics and sufficient indemnity insurance.
If you or a family member have previously engaged the services of a will-writer and you are unsure whether it meets your needs or if you need to deal with the Estate of someone who has died, please contact Williamsons Solicitors who can help.
