Wills and Probate | Certainty UK Will Register Blog

Published: 1st November 2009  Source: Julian Knight, Independent

It’s a difficult one Should people who are cohabiting have the right to claim the estates of their loved ones when they die in the same way bereaved spouses or civil partners do? The UK Law Commission says yes. But others say that if the cohabitees had meant their partners to have a share of their wealth they would have either got married or written a will. Dig deeper and the argument becomes one about protecting the “specialness” of marriage.

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Published: 4 October 2009 Source: Julian Knight and Chiara Cavaglieri, Independent

Enticing offers of discount or even free will-writing services may sound harmless enough, but many families who take this route risk paying dearly when it comes to sorting out the eventual estate. Will-writing companies, banks and solicitors may be taking consumers for a ride by appointing themselves as executors in the will and charging over the odds for taking an estate through probate.

Some banks and will-writers can offer their services as a loss leader; they can recoup their money tenfold by ensuring they are included in the will as executors, then levying bumper fees when the testator passes away. After death, it is difficult to remove executors from a will; as a result, estates can be hit with unspecified charges of as much as 4.5 per cent, or £22,500 on a £500,000 estate.

“Wills are now also being written by unqualified people who have no professional ethics whatsoever,” says Adam Walker, the director of Final Duties, an independent probate broker.

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