Telephone: +44 (0)161 241 9400

 Email: info@touchsolicitors.co.uk

Address: 13 Cobden Street, Chadderton OL9 9LE

Will drafting

A Will legally records your last wishes.

The most common types of Wills are:

Standard Wills
Mirror Wills
Discretionary Trust Wills
Life Interest trust wills

Perhaps you are worried about going into care or inheritance tax?

By speaking to our expert, we can ensure that you are offered the best advice to help you decide which Will is suited to your circumstances.

Unlike Will writers or self help packs, we here at touch solicitors are all qualified solicitors and specialists in this field of law.

We do not use Will-writing software nor do we work on a commission.  You see who your solicitor is in the comfort of your own home.

We are also happy to offer storage for your Will at no additional cost.

Contact us now to book a no obligation visit.

Making a Will

Making a Will is a painless task but is incredibly important to ensure that your loved ones are properly looked after

  • The hardest part of making a Will is taking the decision to make one. Once you overcome this the rest is easy.

    It is important for you to make a Will (Intestacy) whether or not you consider you have many possessions or money or even if you believe you are too young. It is important to make a Will because:-

    If you die without a Will, there are certain rules which dictate how the money, property or possessions are to be distributed

    Unmarried partners and partners who have not registered a civil partnership cannot inherit from each other unless there is Will, so the death of one partner may create serious financial problems for the remaining partner
    If you have children, you will need to make a Will so that arrangements for the children can be made if either one or both parents die
    It may be possible to reduce the amount of tax payable in Inheritance Tax if advice is taken in advance and a Will is made
    If your circumstances have changed, it is important that you make a Will to ensure that your money and possessions are distributed according to your wishes. For example, if you marry after you have made a Will, then your Will becomes invalid and you would need to make a new one (changing a Will).

    Anyone. You could be young, single, without children or have little in terms of assets, but your should still have a Will.

    If your current Will does not reflect your wishes, then it can be changed. With an up-to-date Will the guarantee remains that you have complete control of who receives your assets.

    Without a Will, your family may end up with an expensive legal battle in having to prove their entitlement to your assets.

    The rules of intestacy mean that the entitlement to your assets depends on where the person ranks in the hierarchy of entitlement produced by the Government.

    Your individual circumstances are not looked at and, more importantly, it does not matter what you have previously expressed to anyone. Your wishes are not upheld unless you leave a valid Will.

    You can prepare a Will yourself using self help guides (DIY Wills) or alternatively to ensure that you have expert legal advice you can contact a Solicitor.

    If you chose to make an appointment with us, we will send you out a little questionnaire with some guidance notes to ensure that our meeting with you is simple, straightforward and pain free.

    All you need to do is read and complete the questionnaire noting down any questions you may have.

    This is governed by section 9 Wills Act 1837. It provides that no Will shall be valid unless:

    it is in writing and signed
    The signature must intend to give effect to the Will
    The Will must be witnessed by two or more witnesses present at the same time
    Witnesses must sign in the presence of the person making the Will
    Once signed, the will must be stored safely and must NOT be marked in anyway (Storing a Will)

    The Will must also be updated when your circumstances change as this may render your Will invalid, such as getting married after making a Will.

    There is no need for a Will to be drawn up or witnessed by a Solicitor. If you wish to make a Will yourself, you can do so. However, you should only consider doing this if the Will is going to be straightforward and you understand the meaning of each clause and the consequences of them.

    It is generally advisable to use a Solicitor or to have a Solicitor check a Will you have drawn up to make sure it will have the effect you want. This is because it is easy to make mistakes and, if there are errors in the Will, this can cause problems after your death. Sorting our misunderstandings and disputes after your death may result in considerable legal costs not forgetting unnecessary heart ache to your loved ones.

    Some common mistakes in making a Will are:-

    not being aware of the formal requirements needed to make a Will legally valid
    failing to take account of all the money and property available
    failing to take account of the possibility that a beneficiary may die before the person making the Will
    changing the Will. If alterations are not signed and witnessed, they are invalid

    being unaware of the rules which exist to enable dependants to claim from their estate if those dependants believe they are not adequately provided for in the Will

    Make your own Will packs are becoming increasingly popular. They are quick to buy, cheap and can be done in the comfort of your own home.

    With the self help guides, you are advised about everything that you need to know – or are you?

    Self help guides are:

    very detailed. The booklets provide you with a lot of valuable information but it is also very time consuming to read them;
    not a complete guide and do not cater for all circumstances. They are a standard “fit-all” set of document which may not cater to your individual needs;
    full of examples but how do you know what is right for you or whether there are other circumstances which are not covered by the example which would be more suited to you;
    designed to give you peace of mind in the comfort of your own home. But what is the guarantee that we have hoped to achieve has been effectively documented in writing;
    cheap, but given the amount of time you spend reading the document, does a Solicitors fee really sound that bad?
    Nothing takes the place of a qualified expert.

    If you are keen to use a self-help guide we would recommend you to check the following:

    Have you got the wording of your Will correct? If there is any ambiguity, this could mean that what you think is going to happen to the assets, doesn’t
    Do you understand each clause of your Will and the consequences of them? Unfortunately Wills contain legal jargon which often is not understood by the lay person.
    Are you leaving any specific gifts to anyone? Have you thought about whether there should be any substitution gifts in place in the event that the gift in question is sold or lost?
    Have you considered the event where your named beneficiaries may not survive you and in such event, who should get their share?
    Not including a person in a Will because you have fallen out with them does not mean that the person cannot make a claim against your Estate when you die. Have you clearly understood the effects and provisions of the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975?
    These are just a few examples of what many people do not take into consideration when drafting their Will.

    We would recommend that all self prepared Wills are checked through by someone who is legally qualified to ensure that your wishes are carried out the way you want.

    Foreign assets

    If you have assets abroad, you should strongly think about writing a Will in the country where those assets are.

    You must also remember that a Standard revocation clause needs to be amended so as to not revoke any foreign Will you have made.

    We offer a professional service with straightforward advice on how to make your Will.

    Unfortunately, history has it for Wills to contain legal jargon which is complicated to read and understand. We have devised a Will Pack which we send out to you with your draft Will which explains each clause of your Will so you know exactly what your Will means.

    Making a Will has never been so easy.

    Simply send us a copy of your will with a cover letter explaining what your current wishes are either by:

    Email: info@wesolicitors.com

    Fax: 0161 684 3724

    Post: we solicitors llp 3rd Floor, Ivy Mill, Crown Street Failsworth Manchester M35 9BG

    Our experts will then review your Will and give you a call back to discuss your Will.

    With our online will writing service, we use a solicitor to make your Will and not a standard will writing package.

    Simply complete the wills questionnaire and click “send” to send it to our expert.

    We will contact you at the time indicated on the questionnaire to ensure we understand your wishes.

    Once we have received your payment and identification, we will send you a draft of your Will.

    A final Will is then sent to you by post with an explanation of how to sign and where to store.

    It is a peace of mind when a Will is drafted. However, remember that a Will is a document reflecting your last wishes.

    The following will help determine whether you need to change your Will:

    Review your Will every 2-3 years, do they still reflect your wishes
    Have your circumstances changed i.e. are your now married, divorced, have children or inherited a large sum of money
    Have people you intend to benefit died or lost touch
    Have you moved houses or sold items named specifically in your Will
    Have you been hearing of changes in the law
    Codicils can be added for minor changes in your Will, however there remains the uncertainty of intention and there could be a possibility that they contradict with other terms in your Will.

    Why is storage of a Will so important?

    Your Will documents your last wishes. It is important that it is stored safely and not marked in any way as this may invalidate it;
    An invalid Will means that your wishes may not be upheld when you die;
    Safe storage of the Will avoids anyone finding out the contents of your Will before your death; and
    Safe storage also ensures that your Will is not lost or destroyed
    Where do you keep your Will?

    Once a Will has been made, it should be kept in a safe place and other documents should not be attached to it. There are a number of places you can keep a Will:-

    At home
    In a Bank
    At the Principle Registry of the Family Division, of the High Court
    A District Registry
    Probate Registry
    With a Solicitor
    We offer:

    A safe and reliable fireproof Will storage service;
    For just £50 plus VAT a year, you have the piece of mind of knowing that your Will is safe and well looked after. The fees are not payable before your death unless you take the Will out of storage or have a new Will prepared by someone other than this firm;
    The fees are waived if we are appointed to deal with the administration of your Estate; and
    We will seek to remind you very 3-5 years to review the contents of your Will

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