Wills, Trusts & Estates News

Certainty.co.uk - The Importance of Registering Your Will - Jessie Hughes

Routinely, grieving relatives find themselves in a very awkward position, ‘Did Mum make that will she was talking about?', ‘I'm sure Dad made his will, but where is it? As you can imagine, these questions usually arise at the worst possible time, when they are already in a daze following the loss of a loved one. Some people, we know are incredibly organised, they make their will, lodge it with their solicitors, inform their executors and keep a copy with their important documents in a fire proof box for which their nearest and dearest have a key for emergencies......then there's the rest of us...

All too often, families are unsure whether that will that mum was always talking about doing ever got done, and what was the name of that solicitor she mentioned? In this situation, family members usually finds themselves in a position of instructing solicitors to write numerous letters to other firms of solicitors in the area to establish if any of them ever prepared a will for the deceased. This is a time consuming and costly process and it comes at an already difficult time.

By registering a will with Certainty.co.uk you are ensuring that there is a central national record that you have made a will and which firm of solicitors hold that will for you. This undoubtedly, makes things much more straightforward for your loved ones.

Let's also explore the more sinister scenario. Imagine, Mrs Bloggs, a widow with one adult child, Mrs Loveless, with whom she hasn't had real contact with for years. Mrs Bloggs makes a will leaving everything to her niece, Miss Goody. Miss Goody has been a constant source of support to Mrs Bloggs in her latter years. The problem arises when Mrs Bloggs dies. It turns out, Mrs Bloggs hadn't registered her will with Certainty.co.uk and she has the original will at home. Following her death, Mrs Loveless appears on the scene. Nobody questions her authority to enter the house and begin the process of sorting matters out because nobody knows anything different. To her disgust, Mrs Loveless comes across the will from which she can see she has been excluded. She holds the original in her hands and it occurs to her ‘if this will didn't exist, I would inherit under the intestacy laws'. Miss Loveless proceeds to destroy the original will.

Had Mrs Bloggs registered with Certainty.co.uk and stored her original will with her solicitors, this type of deception and criminal activity would have been much more difficult to achieve.

Lees Solicitors LLP offer free registration for any wills made with us before 14th August 2008 and any wills made after this date can be registered for £9.99 inclusive of vat. The process is incredibly simple but also ensures that your confidential information remains so until such time as your executors provide their identification and your death certificate.

For more information about registering you will with Certainty.co.uk contact Jessie Hughes on 0151 647 9381.

Jessie Hughes

This article provides a summary of a recent case/change in law/news item. It is intended for general information purposes only and is not to be relied upon. It does not constitute legal advice and should not be treated under any circumstances as a substitute for legal advice. Lees Solicitors LLP does not accept any responsibility for any loss that may arise from reliance upon the information contained within this article. The copyright in this article is owned by Lees Solicitors LLP and permission must be sought before reproduction or publishing.

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