Making a Will is one of the most important steps you can take to protect your family. But Will writing is not a regulated activity in England and Wales. Anyone can offer will‑writing services — even without qualifications, insurance or oversight.
I recently spoke to a client who told me that she had a Will written by a Will writer but didn’t have a copy herself and couldn’t contact him. She thought he was a local person. After a lot of research it turned out that the Will writer was not a local man at all but was in Bristol, working from his home and using local phone numbers wherever he was advertising. His business had in fact gone into liquidation and he had started up again shortly afterwards using a different name.
Since then I have come across similar examples and have read about a lot more. With the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI) it is now a lot easier for people in many sectors to set up a business doing work with little or no qualifications or experience let alone any regulation. A person can set up a Will writing business from a bedsit in Darlington or Norwich using local numbers to advertise and creating AI generated documents with few safeguards in place. Charges appear cheap and they can be churned out in volume.
You may also come across some Will writing firms with legal sounding names such as ‘Sovereign Legal Wills’ ‘Parliament Wills and Estates’ or ‘Mayfair Wills and Probate’, but it doesn’t mean that the firm is regulated or staff legally qualified.
Now I know that there are some perfectly good professional Will writers out there and therefore I am not saying that choosing this option is not valid. However, I believe we should all make informed choices and that is why I have highlighted the following issues which have been raised by independent Regulators including the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and Legal Services Board (LSB) who have highlighted several significant risks.
1. Invalid or Defective Wills
- Common issues include unclear clauses, contradictory provisions, and Wills that fail to deal with the whole estate
2. Hidden Fees and Executor Traps
- Some unregulated Will writers pressure clients into appointing them as executor, leading to high probate fees. Others use unclear terms or charge extra for storage
3. Misleading or Aggressive Sales Practices
- Regulators have found misleading claims, high‑pressure selling and poor complaint handling.
4. No Mandatory Training or Oversight
- Unregulated Will writers do not need legal qualifications, insurance or regulatory supervision.
5. Higher Complaint Levels
- Wills and probate generate some of the highest complaint levels in the legal sector. Clients using unregulated providers often have no independent body to turn to.
Having highlighted those issues, it is also important to make informed decisions when considering using a solicitor or any law firm. The starting point should be to check that the solicitor or firm is registered with the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)
Why Choose Hollam Solicitors?
Professional legal expertise
- All staff are required by our regulators to maintain professional training records on all of our areas of expertise.
- We never use any hard sales techniques.
Regulation and accountability
- I am regulated by the SRA as is my firm Hollam Solicitors. You can check all solicitors and their firms to see if they are regulated on this website: https://www.sra.org.uk/consumers/register/
Insurance protection
- All regulated firms must have adequate insurance in place
Clear, transparent pricing
- We are required to publish our Will writing prices on our website. All clients are advised in our meeting what our charges will be and a client care letter is issued and contract agreed before any work commences.
A Will tailored to your circumstances
- I take my time with all clients to ensure that their needs are covered. Clients always receive a draft of their will first and this can be followed up and amended several times if necessary before the final version. We understand how important this is for you.
- I also discuss estate planning, talking through any potential Inheritance Tax issues and offer advice on any possible mitigation.
Secure storage and ongoing support
- We offer free and safe storage for all Wills at no charge.
- We register Wills with the National Will Register (NWR) a huge national database of Wills which helps executors locate Wills when required. We do not pass these charges on to our clients for this service.
- We do not charge for retrieving a Will from storage.
- We offer free 30 minute appointments regarding any matter.
