Will Writing Services in England and Wales

What does a will actually do?

A will sets out who inherits your estate, appoints the executors who carry out your wishes, and names guardians for any children under 18. It takes effect only on death.

Your last will and testament does more than name beneficiaries. It lets you leave specific gifts, provide for a pet, include a legacy to charity, and record funeral wishes, which gives most people real peace of mind. It is also where you appoint the people who will actually do the work, so choosing capable executors matters as much as deciding who inherits. Without a will, none of these choices are yours: the statutory rules decide who inherits, and the court decides who administers the estate.

What are the different ways to write a will?

You can write a will yourself, use an online will-writing service, or instruct a solicitor to draft one for you entirely. The route affects cost and the level of checking, not legal validity, and all three must meet the same signing requirements.

• DIY or template will. Cheapest, and legally valid if executed correctly, but nobody checks it. Errors in wording or witnessing are only discovered after death, when they cannot be fixed.
• Solicitor-checked online will. You complete guided questions, and a qualified solicitor reviews the document before you sign. £19.99 for a single will, £29.99 for mirror wills as a couple.
• Full solicitor. A professional drafts the will around your circumstances and advises you. Typically £200 to £650 including the consultation, and the right choice where the estate is genuinely complex.

Comparing the three routes in detail sets out which suits which situation.

What makes a will legally valid?

A will must be in writing, signed by you, and witnessed by two people who are present at the same time and are not beneficiaries. These requirements come from the Wills Act 1837 and apply to every will however it was drafted.

You must also be 18 or over and have the mental capacity to understand what you are doing. The witnessing rules are where most wills fail: using a beneficiary as a witness cancels that person’s gift, and using only one witness can invalidate the whole document. Check the official signing requirements on gov.uk if you are drafting one yourself, since these are the details that decide whether a will works at all.

Can someone challenge your will?

Yes, but only on specific legal grounds, and a correctly signed and witnessed will is hard to overturn. Most challenges argue that the will was not signed properly, that the person lacked capacity, or that someone pressured them.

A will can be contested if it was not signed and witnessed as the Wills Act 1837 requires, if the person making it did not have the mental capacity to understand what they were doing, or if they were pressured into it. Separately, certain family members and dependants can claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 if the will leaves them without reasonable financial provision, and those claims must usually be made within six months of the grant of probate. Clear wording, correct witnessing and a solicitor check all make a will harder to attack. You can write a will online for £19.99 including VAT, and our guide to how much a will costs compares every route.

When do you need a solicitor rather than an online will?

Use a full solicitor if you have a blended family, business or overseas assets, an estate facing inheritance tax, or you need a trust. For a standard estate, a solicitor-checked online will does the same job.

The honest dividing line is complexity, not wealth. Children from a previous relationship, where you want your partner provided for but your own children to eventually inherit, usually need a trust rather than a straightforward will. The same applies to a business you want kept intact, property abroad, or a beneficiary who needs the protection of a trust because they cannot manage money. If none of that describes you, paying full solicitor rates buys advice you will not use.

When should you update your will?

Review your will after a marriage, divorce, new child, house move, or a death in the family, since marriage automatically revokes any existing will. That is a rule that catches most people out completely.

Marrying or entering a civil partnership cancels any will made beforehand, unless it was specifically written in contemplation of that marriage. Divorce does not cancel the whole will, but it removes a former spouse as a beneficiary and executor. For a small change, a codicil may be enough. For anything substantial, a new will with a proper revocation clause is clearer and less likely to be disputed.

Where should you keep your will?

Keep the signed original secure, and make sure your executors know where it is, since a will nobody can find may be treated as destroyed. Storage matters as much as the will itself.

Options are home storage, the official probate service, or a managed service. Secure storage with the people who prepared your will removes the risk of loss and the presumption problem that comes with it. Whichever you choose, leave a note with your papers saying where the original is held, because the document only works if the right people can find it.

Who’s who in a will?

A will names several roles: testator, executor, beneficiary, guardian and witness, and knowing each one helps you fill them correctly. Getting a role wrong, or leaving one out, is a common source of confusion.

• Testator. That’s you, the person making the will. You must be 18 or over and have the mental capacity to understand what you are signing.
• Executor. The person or people you appoint to carry out your wishes: applying for probate, paying debts, and distributing the estate. Choose someone capable and willing, since the role carries real responsibility.
• Beneficiary. Anyone named to inherit something, whether a share of the estate, a specific gift, or a legacy to charity. A beneficiary cannot also act as a witness to your will.
• Guardian. The person you name to look after any children under 18 if both parents die. Without this, a court decides instead.
• Witness. One of the two people who watch you sign and then sign themselves, confirming the will was executed correctly. Witnesses have their own strict rules, and getting them wrong is the single most common reason a will fails.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a solicitor to write a will?

No. There is no legal requirement to use a solicitor in England and Wales at all. A solicitor-checked online will gives you professional review of the finished document at a fraction of full solicitor cost, which is enough for most straightforward estates.

What happens if I die without a will?

The intestacy rules decide who inherits, following a strict statutory order based on marriage and blood relationships only. Unmarried partners and unadopted stepchildren receive nothing at all, whatever the length of the relationship. Dying without a will explains the full order and its consequences.

How long does it take to write a will?

A solicitor-checked online will takes around 20 minutes to complete, then you print and sign it in front of two independent witnesses present together. A solicitor-drafted will usually takes one to three weeks, including appointments and time to review the draft.

Can I write my own will and still have it checked?

Yes, and that is effectively what a solicitor-checked online service does for you. You answer guided questions rather than drafting from scratch, then a qualified solicitor reviews the finished document before you sign, catching the errors that commonly invalidate homemade wills.

What is the biggest mistake people make with a will?

Using an invalid witness is the most common and costly mistake, whether that means only one witness, a witness under 18, or a beneficiary acting as a witness, which cancels their own gift. Witnessing rules are simple, but they are also where homemade wills most often go wrong.