Can we change our will?

[holidaylady]

Hi when we got a will written it was with the solicitors my DH uses so thought they were good.

We got a really young solicitor. This is possibly relevant, not being ageist!

So the part where you decide exactly who gets what, we decided to split evenly via our sisters. Fine. But the solicitor said what if you have children. Nope we aren't we replied.

Ok so 6 years later we did!

I called up and they said we had to make a whole new will. Which is annoying. If the solicitor had said don't be daft, just put in offspring and it is just ignored if you don't have any then we would be fine now.

She should have pushed us on this!

So- do we really need a whole new will, or can we add in a paragraph and cross out the incorrect paragraph? (Is this called a codecil?)

So grateful for any pointers in the right direction thanks

I think getting it changed is a real priority even if it is to null and void ( get rid of ) the old one. Dying without a will at least it would be passed to your children ( if something happened to you both- assuming in the uk,).

I would think an additional paragraph would be possible ( no legal knowledge).

Thanks yoyo, but they said we needed to shell out hundreds for a whole new one. Seems an unnecessary money spinner to me!

There is a will written on MN, Marlow wills. She is very reasonable and efficient. Check the ads or do a search on that as a nickname

writer

I recommend Marlow Wills too she's fab!

It's unfair to blame the solicitor - she offered advice and you declined to take it. She's there to advise, its not her responsibility to "push" you to do anything

Thanks Random I will do

Of course you need a new will. You need to provide for your kids in terms of guardianship as well as money. This is far more complicated than a codicil. Pay up for a new will and stop complaining about th3 solicitor. They asked, you answered. It’s entirely down to you.

Hi definitely need a new will but it shouldn't cost that much especially if your wills are mirrors of each other. Do appoint guardians for dc and also one or two trustees to look after the money (separate to the guardians) on dc's behalf should the worst happen.

If you are being quoted hundreds of pounds then try somewhere different. Most high st firms will have fixed prices for this kind of thing & sort it now otherwise you are just potentially leaving a mess for someone else to sort out on top of everything else. Just makes the world easier.

What northern said.. you also need to name guardians for your children. Absolutely need a new will.

Jeepers northern calm down. I already said I have no legal knowledge, I'm not claiming to be asking for anything unreasonable. I was asking for a little knowledge so I can speak to the solicitors with a smidge more knowledge and confidence.

Thanks lizzyb that's super helpful, just the guidance we need.

It's going to be sorted this month.

our lawyer made it very clear any markings on the will, will render it null and void. plus we hold an original but it is also registered with the government.

The will was right for you at the time. She advised you of this issue and you chose to ignore it which again was reasonable at the time. Its sensible to review wills every 5 years or so as life changes.

You now need wills that deal with the fact you have minor children. A trust needs to be set up so your estate is properly managed in the unlikely event you both went when your kids are young. You need to decide which age your children should inherit, the default age is 18 most people push that back. You need to appoint guardians and you may want to do a letter of wishes expressing how you want them to raise your children.

Thanks Kerala, more to think about.

Thanks for your help everyone

There is (or was) a 'Free Wills' scheme where, I think once or twice a year SOME solicitors draw up wills for free.
This is not strictly true as they do it for charity so they ask you to pay, around £100 which goes to a charity and not the solicitors.
I think it is 'freewill.org' has a website that tells you which solicitors in your area do this. A google search for free wills should get you there if I remembered that name incorrectly.

I wouldn't bother with that the firm I'm working at does a few of these capped at 25, some firms limit this to the over 70s. Very kind of the solicitors to donate their fee the client still pays though.

There is (or was) a 'Free Wills' scheme where, I think once or twice a year SOME solicitors draw up wills for free

I've come across a few that then appointed the firm as executors

Thanks for the recommendations 😊
I'm not currently advertising on MN due to volume of work but you can easily google Marlow Wills or PM me for advice.

You need an uptodate will, of course! The Which? Will service is pretty good, and inexpensive, for simple estates (like mine :)) Or try MSE www.moneysavingexpert.com/family/free-cheap-wills/ Their link to Which says £107 single £179 double. I used Which when I wanted to amend an old will and the solicitor wanted to charge £450 to change a beneficiary...

Money well spent to get it done properly I would say.

Can you go to a solicitor and have a caveat added rather than a whole new will? We need to update ours as our SIL and her husband are divorcing and he's down as a potential guardian which obv won't work anymore.

If you are in Scotland your kids will have rights to inherit anyway .. you cant disinherit your kids in Scotland..no matter what you write in a will

so if you are in scotland it might save you some money