BONALLACK & BISHOP – SALISBURY SOLICITORS –  PRESS RELEASE
11th August

Consumers need more protection in will writing market, say local solicitors Bonallack and Bishop

Following the revelation of the risks of using will writers by BBC Panorama’s Wills: The Final Rip Off? programme on Monday 9th August, Salisbury and  Andover Lawyers Bonallack and Bishop have called for greater regulation of will writing companies to match those imposed on solicitors.

Bonallack and Bishop say that the introduction of a level playing field in the will writing market will make sure that consumers receive much better protection against poorly drafted or inaccurate wills, as outlined in Panorama’s investigation into the unregulated will writing industry.

Bonallack and Bishop’s senior partner Tim Bishop said, ‘The independent Panorama investigation highlighted a real problem area we have been seriously concerned about for some time – there are severe risks to people who, often unknowingly, choose to use unqualified, unregulated and uninsured will writing services. Unlike specialist wills and probate solicitors, will writers are not subject to robust legal regulation, nor are people using them protected against errors by comprehensive indemnity insurance, which all solicitors have to hold.

"Solicitors are not only qualified to prepare wills, they are held to strict standards by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and their obligatory insurance cover means there is complete protection of their client's interests. In the event that anything does go wrong in the preparation of a will, both the client and their estate receive full protection. Will writers simply can't offer that level of protection and the lack of any formal regulation or compulsory training means that many will writers don't even have a basic level of competence in preparing wills, which can be complex."

Just last year, a Law Society survey discovered that many solicitors were kept busy sorting out the often disastrous results of wrongly drafted wills originally prepared by will writing services. Furthermore a brand new survey, just published by the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), reveals the scale of the problem posed to the consumer from unregulated will writers. According to the survey:

• 75% of STEP members encountered cases of “incompetence or dishonesty in the will writing market in the last 12 months”.
• Two-thirds of those responding reported experiencing hidden fees charged by will writers which were not outlined in the stated price for a will.
• 63% had direct experience of cases where will writing companies had gone out of business and had disappeared with their clients’ wills.
• Just over one third encountered cases where the incompetence of will writers led to significantly increased tax bills.

Tim Bishop continued, “In the last few years it's been sad to see an enormous increase in the amount of our work that is being generated by contested wills – many down to botched wills drafted by negligent will writers. In fact, such is the growth in this area of work that we have recently set up a specialist website dealing with contested wills and are developing increasing expertise in the area from work generated nationwide. I'm personally a great believer in the benefits that competition brings to the public and I have no objection at all to legal services being provided by non-solicitors – provided, however, that consumers are adequately protected from cowboys. In the absence of adequate protection and regulation for consumers with regard to will writing, the safest option for the public is to use a specialist solicitor to prepare their will. Whilst moves taken by some will writing organisations to try to impose a code of practice on their own members are certainly a small step in the right direction, until there is an equal level of protection to consumers regardless of whether they are a will writer or solicitor, the public will sadly remain seriously exposed to the very real risks highlighted on the Panorama program."

For any further comments, please contact Tim Bishop on 01722 422300 or via email

Details of the STEP survey can be found here

For more information about how to contest wills, visit our specialist contesting a will microsite.