In Scotland and elsewhere in the UK, some legal services can only be provided by regulated legal professionals, such as solicitors and advocates.
However, legal advice in other areas, including will writing, may be delivered by people who are not regulated.
The risks of lack of regulation
In a House of Commons debate on the issue in 2008, Lorely Burt (then MP for Solihull) commented that:
“ …someone could be a convicted fraudster, set up as a will writer tomorrow with no qualifications, experience or professional indemnity insurance and proceed to dispense advice on tax, inheritance laws and so on. Most consumers are unable to judge the quality or value of the service that they are getting, so it is no exaggeration to say that will writing has become a happy hunting ground for the incompetent, the dishonest and the fly-by-night operator.”
She also went on to acknowledge that there were many ethical operators and, indeed, professional bodies for will writers.
Nevertheless, as she pointed out:
“The problem is not with them, or with the vast majority of their members, but with those who operate without proper training, professionalism and insurance.”
As far as Scotland is concerned, the Legal Services (Scotland) Act 2010 contains sections which will regulate anyone who provides will writing services for any fee, gain or reward. But these provisions are not in force yet and the Scottish Government has no specific timeframe for implementing them.
Lack of public awareness
The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers – APIL – is often mentioned on this website. Their President is Jonathan Wheeler.
His London-based law firm, Bolt Burdon Kemp, recently commissioned research in which 2,000 people were asked about issues relating to wills and will writers.
The results of the survey showed a worrying lack of consumer understanding about the regulation of will writing services. For example, will writer problems could result from findings that –
- Two thirds of participants did not realise that will writing companies do not have to have insurance against the consequences of their mistakes and that will writers do not need to have any qualifications or training.
- 3 out of every 5 people questioned did not know that will writers are not regulated. (They said they either assumed the will writer they used was insured or never thought to question it).
How best to safeguard your interests
It is important to do proper research before choosing your will writer.
There are many trustworthy and dependable will writing companies available but you need to check they have proper insurance. It’s also worth investigating what training their staff receive. Are they members of any professional bodies?
Only solicitors offer will writing services which are regulated.
Solicitors are not necessarily any more skilled at preparing wills than will writers. However, solicitors must go through an extensive period of legal training in order to practise at all – and the requirement for them to undertake relevant training continues throughout their careers.
Solicitors are not allowed to practise unless they have professional indemnity insurance, to safeguard clients financially in the event that mistakes occur.
When wills go wrong
The biggest problem is that errors in wills usually only come to light after the person who made the will has died. By then, it is too late to correct any mistakes, with the result that the estate may pass to persons who were not the intended beneficiaries of the deceased.
Claims, as a result of alleged professional negligence in the drafting of wills, are probably on the increase. If the writer of the will in question did not carry insurance, it may be a hopeless situation for someone trying to recover the monetary losses they say have resulted from the will writer’s failings.
How we can help
If you have any questions about any issues raised by this article, please get in touch with us. All initial enquiries are free of charge and without obligation.
You can contact us on 01343 544077 or send us a Free Online Enquiry.
Links you might like
- Our Grigor & Young website has a whole section dealing with Wills.
- The Law Society of Scotland’s website page about getting a solicitor to help you make your Will which includes a short video.
