Latest news with #willwriting
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Somerset solicitors raise nearly £5,000 in charity will campaign
A law firm in Somerset has raised nearly £5,000 through an annual charity will-writing campaign. Pardoes Solicitors, with offices in Bridgwater, Yeovil and Taunton, raised £4,690 through its participation in the Will Aid campaign, placing it among the top donors in the UK and the third highest in the South West. The campaign invites solicitors to volunteer their time and expertise to write basic wills, waiving their usual fees and instead encouraging clients to make a voluntary donation to charity. Bhavani Hogarty, CEO of Pardoes, said: "Taking part in Will Aid is a fantastic opportunity to give back – not only by helping people secure their future with a professionally written will, but also by raising funds for charities that make a real impact. "Knowing our efforts are helping both our community and those further afield is truly rewarding. "We are delighted to have played our part in this campaign and to have raised such a significant amount over the years." Pardoes has supported the Will Aid campaign since 1996, raising a total of £25,835 to date. Funds raised through Will Aid support a range of partner charities, including Age UK, British Red Cross, Christian Aid, NSPCC, Save the Children, SCIAF and Trócaire. Lauren Poole, chair of Will Aid, said: "A huge well done to Pardoes for their incredible fundraising efforts. "It's inspiring to see so many legal professionals come together to make a difference – helping people gain peace of mind with a professionally written will while supporting charities that change lives. "We're grateful to every solicitor who gives their time to this campaign, and on behalf of our partner charities, I'd like to extend our heartfelt thanks to Pardoes and all the firms who participate." Will Aid has raised more than £24m in donations since its launch in 1988, in addition to generating millions more in pledged charitable legacies. The campaign takes place each November, with the recommended minimum donation is £120 for a basic single will and £200 for a pair of mirror wills. More information on the campaign is available at Peter de Vena Franks, campaign director, said: "This year's Will Aid campaign has been another resounding success, thanks to the dedication of firms like Pardoes. "Their generosity and commitment mean that more people can get the will they need while also supporting crucial charitable work. "It's wonderful to see such enthusiasm for giving back."
Telegraph
03-07-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
‘My late partner bought a will for £19.99 – now I might lose my house'
A bereaved mother-of-three faces losing her home because of an online will bought for just £19.99. Wendy Roberts, 63, from Bolton, was still grieving the loss of her long-term partner, Nigel Smith, when she received a demand for almost £10,000 from a will writing company. Mr Smith, who ran his own ironing service, died of a brain tumour in 2024, leaving his estate to Ms Roberts – including the property where they had lived together for more than 20 years. In 2017, he bought a cheap online will through a service called Nine Minute Will. The upfront fee was just £19.99. However, Nine Minute Will included a clause appointing its parent company, MedEx Direct, the executor of the estate. This made the company responsible for winding down the estate after Mr Smith's death, rather than a friend or relative. On top of this, the terms and conditions carried extra charges. A clause stated that MedEx Direct would charge 4pc of the estate for its services as executor, in addition to any legal and administration costs. Adding a charge of this size is unusual but not illegal, as will writing is unregulated in England and Wales. As a result, Ms Roberts is now facing a £10,000 bill, plus thousands of pounds in legal fees. There is not enough money left in the estate to pay the charges. So MedEx Direct has said that Ms Roberts must cover the fee out of her own pocket, otherwise it will sell the house or put a charge on the property. At one point, in emails seen by The Telegraph, the company even told Ms Roberts to vacate her home within 30 days. Ms Roberts – who has three children and nine grandchildren with Mr Smith – said the ordeal had been 'horrible' because she was 'still grieving'. She is adamant her partner would not have signed the agreementhad he understood the terms and conditions. She said: 'Not a prayer Nigel would have done it knowingly. I want people to know – do not go down the line of a cheap will. These companies are not even regulated, but they're still allowed to do what they do.' Currently, Nine Minute Will has 43 reviews on the website Trustpilot, 77pc of which are one-star, with warnings of 'outrageous' fees in the small print. MedEx Direct denies any wrongdoing, and there is no suggestion the company has acted unlawfully. Steven Katz, director of MedExDirect, said: 'We will administrate the estate of our client in accordance with the law.' Ros Altmann, a former pensions minister, said it was a 'dreadful' case. 'It seems unlikely that her partner would knowingly sign up for that,' she said. Meanwhile, the Society of Estate and Trust Practitioners (STEP), said this kind of situation was 'far too common'. Sarah Manuel, of STEP, a professional body for advisers who specialise in estate planning, said: 'STEP members regularly advise and support people who have previously been given bad will advice.' Professional executors 'not always appropriate' Anyone can set themselves up as a will writer, as the sector is unregulated. This means consumers can be left without protection if things go wrong. The industry has a self-regulatory body called the Society of Will Writers, however, Nine Minute Will is not a member. The Society of Will Writers said it 'generally discouraged' its members from automatically appointing a professional executor. Often clients choose a friend or relative. Anthony Belcher, of the organisation, said: 'A professional appointment may be appropriate in certain circumstances, such as where a client has no suitable friends or family members to act, or where the estate is particularly complex for example, however, it should always be discussed with the client, with the fees for such a service explained clearly.' Mr Belcher said its members who offer this service would typically charge 1pc to 2pc – half what Nine Minute Will charges. STEP has called for will writing to be regulated, along with the trade body, the Law Society. Richard Atkinson, of the Law Society, said: 'Proper regulation will ensure that will-makers are held to a standard that gives people peace of mind.' The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched an investigation into unregulated legal services – including will writing – in 2023 over potential breaches of consumer law. Concluding its investigation last year, the regulator wrote to seven providers, who have not been named, telling them to address their practices or face formal investigations under its new enforcement powers. The CMA identified a number of unfair practices it had encountered during its investigation. These included placing an unfair limit on how much compensation the will writer had to pay if something went wrong due to a badly drafted will, and pressuring the testator to sign up to other services such as will storage. In another case, a business had included a contract term allowing the business to 'unilaterally change terms and conditions', potentially opening the door to higher costs down the line. Nine Minute Will dissolved in 2016, but MedEx Direct is still in operation, according to Companies House. Anyone can write their own will, provided it is signed and witnessed as required. A will must be dated and signed in the presence of two witnesses who are not related to the testator and do not benefit from the will. However, a DIY will is only appropriate for those with simple estates. You may want to consider a solicitor or a member of the Society of Will Writers or STEP if you have a more complex estate – or if you are worried about making a mistake. A will could be open to a legal challenge if it is not valid. A simple will drafted by a solicitor or a will writer can cost about £150 or more. If you have a more complex estate – for example, including a trust – then the cost may exceed £500. Many charities offer free will writing by solicitors, although they expect a donation in return. Ms Manuel of STEP said consumers should do their due diligence to ensure they are getting a good deal. 'The preparation of a will must not be conditional on the will drafter being appointed executor and/or trustee writers. Always check the small print, watch out for hidden fees, and never sign anything you don't understand. 'It's crucial that people check that their will writer is trained, has a recognised specialist qualification with proven experience, insurance, and is a member of a professional membership body such as STEP.'
Telegraph
05-06-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Octopus targets baby boomer inheritances with cheap will-writing
The multibillion-pound fund behind Octopus Energy is rapidly expanding its will-writing business amid a wave of wealthy baby boomers preparing to pass on fortunes to their children. Octopus Legacy said it was fielding 'a massive interest in estate planning', as baby boomers begin to draw up wills to transfer their assets to younger generations. Over the next 30 years, trillions of pounds is expected to be transferred to millennials and Gen Z-ers in what is expected to be the largest wealth transfer ever recorded. Sam Grice, the chief executive of Octopus Legacy, said: 'I think £5.5 trillion is going to be passing from one generation to the next.' Research has suggested that those born between 1946 and 1964 are the richest generation in history, while figures from the Office for National Statistics show that households with people aged between 65 and 74 are 33 times wealthier than Gen Z-ers, with nest eggs worth £502,500 to be passed on. Mr Grice said there was a growing interest in estate planning and will-writing as baby boomers became more aware of their own mortality and were looking for cheaper options to deal with their fortunes. The cost of a simple will is typically between £150 and £200, while solicitors often ask for more than £500 for specialist wills. Octopus charges £100 for its online wills or £150 for will-writing with a phone call or home visit. Mr Grice said many people getting in touch were also raising questions over the impact of recent Treasury changes. In her October Budget, Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, altered both business property relief (BPR) and agricultural property relief (APR). Under the changes, inherited farms worth more than £1m will be taxed at a rate of 20pc, having been shielded from the levies for decades, while a 20pc rate will also be charged on inherited business assets over £1m when someone dies. Mr Grice said: 'When we have our consultations with clients, most of them have a question about inheritance tax.' The rapid expansion of the estate planning arm comes three years after Octopus Group bought the will business, then known as Guardian Angel. It was later rebranded as Octopus Legacy and is now the second-largest estate planning firm in the UK. The business reported a turnover of £245,280 from Jan 1 2022 to April 30 2023. It made a pre-tax loss of £1.22m during the same 16-month period. This week, it bought WSL Will Writing. Mr Grice said Octopus Legacy was looking to mirror the success of the group's energy business Octopus Energy. 'We want to become the market leader in these services and be a really dominant brand ... Once you become a market leader, you have true ability to reshape an industry.' 'For us, that's things like driving fair pricing, being really transparent, focusing on the customer and also having a wider conversation about how you want to be remembered.' Octopus Group was founded in 2000 by Simon Rogerson, Christopher Hulatt and Guy Myles after the trio quit their jobs in asset management in their early 20s. The company is best known for launching Octopus Energy, which has grown from nothing in 2015 to serve almost 13m customers today. The provider has since been spun out of the group but Octopus Group remains the largest external shareholder. Meanwhile, Octopus Group has expanded into a number of different sectors through its investment arm, which manages funds of roughly £10bn for more than 63,000 investors. Earlier this year, Octopus also announced it was launching a new mobile network.
The Independent
08-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
How early should you write a will?
Writing a will can feel morbid and somewhat unsettling, which is why it's often one of those life admin tasks that gets repeatedly postponed. However, planning for the future isn't just for the elderly or the ultra-wealthy – it's essential for anyone with assets or loved ones who rely on them. To clear up some common myths about wills, we spoke with experts who shared some compelling reasons why creating a will sooner rather than later is a wise move – and how it can offer some peace of mind. What age do most people write a will? 'On average, our customers at Farewill write their wills at 45, that's the mean age, but there is a pretty big spread in ages,' says Dan Garrett, co-founder of Farewill, the UK's largest will writing company, and chief growth officer at Dignity Funerals Ltd. 'So, the ages go all the way down to 18, which is the legal minimum, and then we've also got a 108-year-old on our books as well. ' However, Fiona Mainwaring, head of wills and probate at Midlands law firm ORJ Law, notes that the primary motivations for writing or updating a will are usually major life events rather than age itself.' People tend do it in stages. For example, when people write a will in their 20s something usually triggers it, like purchasing property or having children,' recognises Mainwaring. 'Then there is usually a gap until people get married, or remarried, and then again until when people become elderly and feel like they are closer to needing one.' What are some risks of not having a will in place? 'If you're not married, your partner has no legal entitlement to anything in your estate,' highlights Garrett. 'You essentially, even if you live in a property together, depending on how you own it, could lose your property and could just be completely not looked after at all.' Another significant risk is that, in the tragic event both parents pass away, the absence of a will means there's no legal documentation specifying who should be appointed as the child's guardian. 'If both parents die, which is obviously an unusual situation, a will makes sure that who you would like to look after your kids will be appointed as their guardian,' explains Garrett. How often should a will be reviewed and updated? 'I would recommend looking over your will every five to 10 years,' advises Mainwaring. 'Or if your circumstances change, such as big life events such as having children, marriage, divorce, inheritance, moving house etc.' What are the legal requirements for a will to be valid in the UK? 'For it to be valid, has to be in writing on paper – it can't just be a digital document,' says Garrett. 'It also has to be signed by the testator, who's the person making the will, and it has to be signed in person, in pen, by two witnesses who have to both be over 18, and they can't be inheriting something in the will.' What are some common mistakes people make when writing a will? 'A common mistake is not to sign it properly, so to not sign it myself or by two witnesses,' highlights Garrett. 'Another common mistake is for one of your witnesses to be someone who's inheriting something in the will.' Another common mistake is that marriage revokes a will. 'Let's say you're engaged to someone. You have to draft in the will that you're writing it in anticipation of a marriage, otherwise, when you get married, it will revoke the will that you've written previously,' Garrett explains. Many people are unaware of how property ownership is handled after death, and how this can impact the wishes states in a will. 'There's three different ways to own your property in the UK. You can own it by yourself, you can own it as joint tenants, or you can own it as tenants in common, which means that you can own it like as a percentage share,' he explains. 'A common mistake is that if you own it as joint tenants then whatever you write in your will doesn't matter because if the other person is still alive then they will own the whole house.' What would you say to someone who thinks they're too young or don't own enough to need a will? 'If someone thinks they're too young, they might be right,' says Garrett. 'I think age isn't the right question, is it more about do you have any dependants or assets? 'It's about the people who depend on you and making sure that you put the right set-up in place so they're taken care of.'
