How to choose a will writer you can trust

Because will writing is not tightly regulated, the quality varies, and choosing well matters more than it should have to.

Here is what to look for, including a few things we would want you to check about us too. We mean that genuinely: apply this list to us as rigorously as to anyone else.

Why this matters more than it should

Writing a will is not a reserved legal activity, which means the law does not restrict who may do it. That keeps choice wide and prices down, and it also means the sign on the door tells you very little.

Some will writers are experienced, insured professionals who do nothing else. Some are not. The difference will not be obvious from a website, and the consequences of choosing badly do not surface until you are no longer around to do anything about it. Our guide comparing will writers and solicitors covers the regulatory picture in full.

So the questions below are worth asking before you instruct anyone.

Insurance and a code of practice

This is the basic safety net and the first thing to check.

Ask whether they hold professional indemnity insurance, and do not settle for a yes; ask what the level of cover is. This is what responds if a mistake in drafting causes a loss to your estate years from now.

Ask whether they belong to a professional body such as the Institute of Professional Willwriters or the Society of Will Writers. Membership means a code of practice, ongoing training requirements and a complaints process that sits outside the firm itself.

If either question produces a vague answer or a change of subject, that is your answer.

Fixed, transparent fees

A good will writer tells you the price up front and puts it in writing before any work starts.

Be wary of vague pricing, of hourly rates for what should be a defined piece of work, and of a cheap headline price that grows once you are sitting at the table. The classic version is a very low advertised will price where the actual recommendation turns out to involve products costing thousands.

Ask specifically what is included and what would cost extra, and ask what an amendment will cost in five years' time. An apparently cheap will with expensive amendments is not cheap.

A real conversation, not a template

The value is in someone asking the right questions about your family and your assets, not in the document itself.

A good appointment covers the awkward things: a child from a previous relationship, a beneficiary who receives means-tested benefits, how your house is actually owned, a business, property abroad, someone you want to leave out and why. If it feels like filling in a form, you are paying for paperwork you could have bought for five pounds.

You should come away understanding what your will does, in words you would use yourself.

Honesty about their limits

A trustworthy will writer will tell you when your situation would be better handled by a solicitor. Complex estates, international assets, business succession, questions about capacity, or a real risk of the will being challenged.

If someone claims they can do everything for anyone, be cautious. We refer work out when it should be referred out, and so should anyone you are considering. For what it is worth, we also refer probate and estate administration to a regulated specialist rather than doing it in house, which is set out on our probate page.

No pressure, and time to think

You should never feel rushed into signing anything, and a free consultation should not turn into a sales meeting with a deadline attached.

Watch for urgency that has been manufactured: a price that is only available today, a discount that expires, a suggestion that you should not leave the room without deciding. Estate planning is not a purchase that benefits from being hurried, and anyone who tells you otherwise is not working in your interest.

You should be able to take the paperwork away, think about it, and come back.

What happens to your will afterwards

Ask about storage. Ask what it costs, whether it is insured, and where the will physically lives.

Then ask the question most people forget: what happens to your documents if the firm ever stops trading, merges or is acquired? A will has to outlast the business that wrote it, and good firms have a clear answer. Our guide on storing a will safely sets out the options, including the ones that do not involve using your will writer at all.

Reading reviews properly

Look at their Google reviews and any independent testimonials, but read them rather than counting them.

You are looking less for a perfect five-star average and more for a pattern. Do people mention feeling listened to, given time, and not pressured? Do reviews describe the actual experience, or are they one-line ratings that could be about anything? How does the firm respond to a less-than-perfect review, defensively or decently? That last one tells you a great deal.

A handful of detailed, specific reviews is worth more than a hundred generic ones.

Red flags

Taken together, these are the signs to walk away from:

• High-pressure selling, or a price that expires
• Reluctance to put the fee in writing before starting
• No professional indemnity insurance, or no clear answer about it
• No professional body membership
• No clear answer about storage or what happens if the firm closes
• Cold calling, particularly targeting older people
• A very cheap will that leads to a recommendation for something costing thousands
• Claiming to be a solicitor or to be regulated when they are not

The questions to ask, in one list

Take these with you:

1. Do you hold professional indemnity insurance, and what level of cover?
2. Which professional body are you a member of?
3. Is the fee fixed, and will you confirm it in writing before starting?
4. What is included, and what would cost extra?
5. What will an amendment cost in a few years?
6. Where will my will be stored, what does that cost, and is it insured?
7. What happens to my will if you stop trading?
8. When would you tell me to use a solicitor instead?

Apply it to us too

We would genuinely encourage you to put this checklist to us as well as to anyone else. If you would like to ask us any of these questions directly, we are happy to answer them, with no obligation to go ahead.

You can see our fixed fees without speaking to anyone, read about how we work, or get in touch for a free first conversation.

General information, not legal advice.