Share your thoughts on Wills with Which? Win £300 voucher or free Will! NOW CLOSED

[RebeccaEMumsnet]

Writing a Will is something that many of us put off, as it’s never a nice subject to talk about and the process can seem confusing, but Which? Wills is hoping to change all that with their online Will writing and Power of Attorney service.

They would love to hear your experience of how you got your Will sorted, or, if you haven’t got around to it yet, what’s putting you off? It would be great to hear your stories of how you decided how you would write your Will, and your tips to those who have yet to do it.

Here’s what Alex Neil, at Which? has to say: "It's important to make a will to ensure that your assets, including your home, savings and belongings, are distributed according to your wishes. It can be very difficult for loved ones to do this if you pass away without having made a will.”

Did the birth of your DCs prompt you to write your Will? Do you think that it’s important to have a Will as a parent, and if so, why?

Whatever your experience (or lack of experience!) of Will writing, we’d love to hear your story so that other Mumsnetters can take advice.

Everyone who posts on this thread will be entered into a prize draw, and one MNer will win either a £300 Love2Shop voucher or a free Which? Will Writing Service (T&Cs below).

Thanks,

MNHQ
Standard Insight T&Cs apply
Which? Wills prize T&Cs

[Elizasmum02]

We wrote our wills as soon as we had our first child, they dont need updating as we only have the one anyway
i think its very important to have a will written up and arrangements made for funerals as well

[HelenSw4les]

None of us are immortal, however from speaking with friends and family, I've come to the opinion that, although everyone knows you should have one, rarely do people actually get one until they're in their 50s/60s and that's probably only after the deaths of their own parents.

[spanglisher]

I think a will is essential if you have complicated family relationships, but to be honest if I die I'd expect what little I have to go to my husband and kids, and if we all die together, I really don't care what happens to my estate. I will get around to it at some point but it just doesn't seem a priority at the moment

[serendipity1980]

we wrote our wills when we bought our first house together and we wrote it quite cleverly, assuming that we would have children, and started how the house would be be split and who would look after our children (even though we hadn't had them!) It saved us loads of money now.

[claza93]

It is something that I know we should have but for some reason we have never got round to it. With four children it is important that everything is in place should something awful happen. It is my other half that hates talking about morbid things like wills

[GrumpyMcGrumpFace]

I got it done when I was able to get it done for free with work. It did take forever though (not giving the information, it took months for the solicitor to process the information into the will. I thought it would be so ironic if I'd died while waiting!).

I do think it's important to have a will, to avoid all the extra costs and inconvenience to my relatives when I die. My will is very simple, but it means there should be minimal hold ups or insurance costs etc compared with dying intestate. I also took the opportunity to include a statement of wishes for the bringing up of the DC - not legally binding, but again might be useful and/or comforting to my relatives.

[zarinebedford]

I really want to make a will but just don't know where to start!

[mrdemmy]

Hey guys ,my son recently applied for Harris Purley and has been put on the waiting list .We just moved into the area and many of my new neighbours have been saying the school is not as good as it seems in many ways .im not sure if I should take him out becuase I don't understand what's the matter with the school does anyone know ?

[whomovedmychocolate]

I need a new will. I haven't renewed it since I got divorced and I do need to get on with it but to be honest, I keep waiting for will month - when you can get it cheaper, then forgetting.

The bank keeps nagging me too because I have an investment portfolio but it's difficult to be motivated because every time I talk to them it seems to cost me money!!!! I must get off my bum and do it though :(

[daisyduke66]

A "do-it-yourself' will is perfectly acceptable. There are far too many companies trying to make far too much money in this area. I think people find this very off-putting and may actually prevent them from drafting a will at all.

[CountessOfStrathearn]

We made our (mirror) wills when we were expecting our first child. We had not long been married and wanted to make sure that all the necessary paperwork was sorted. We did it through the Will Aid Month and were talked through things by a very nice solicitor, made easier because it was pretty uncomplicated.

While we are both young(ish!) and have no major health complaints, we are also thinking about sorting Power of Attorney out for each other to prevent issues if something catastrophic happens down the line.

[YourLeftElbow]

I am separated from DH and have 2DC. I don't feel the need to make a will because I'd be okay with XDH getting everything. Though I might like to make a will about lesbing certain books bequeathed to certain people, that sort of thing, but it feels a bit silly!

[Mems]

We did our wills after my FiL died, when DC were young and our major worry was their guardianship as our families are scattered across the UK, Europe and the US. Needs updating now they're legally adults (or thereabouts) but is relatively straightforward. Our solicitor did make us think about what if the worst happens and we all die together. We decided on dividing amongst our nieces & nephews, by-passing my sisters and DH's brothers. We have told DSibs and as the number of DN&N's has increased we're counting on them doing the honourable thing and including everyone in the spoils.

Also agree with the posters who've suggested adding a letter about funeral wishes and arrangements. It will be much easier for your loved ones to organise the send off you want - and at a time when emotions will be so raw it's one less uncertainty to have to deal with.

And finally, when we update our wills we'll be adding clauses about widow/er's re-marriage. I'm not so selfish that I'd want DH to mourn me forever (tho obviously 2nd wife wouldn't be patch on me!) but I want my DC to benefit from our joint assets.

[mynellie]

We got our wills sorted when we had our son as my husband has a daughter (grown up) from a previous marriage and we wanted to make sure as there is lots of extended family that our son went to who we wanted him to go to if my hubby and I died together and also what we wanted to happen to the home and belongings it was easy to do as we did it through hubbies union for free and it was so simple but gave us massive piece of mind, I think if you have children no matter whether you own lots or not just getting a will done to specify what you want for your children is an absolute must

[cookie09]

I think it is so so important to write a will and to get one done by a proper solicitor or registered will writer. When myself and my twin boys father separated I felt it even more so important to get this done as I felt very vulnerable. I mean what would happen to the kids as I have full parental responsibility of them and their father doesn’t care less about them. I needed to know that whatever happened to me my boys would be looked after. It would be awful if anything did happen to me and I hadn’t even considered the future of the kids. I think having children makes you think more about your mortality and the importance of getting a will written up. And for people who think that it is too expensive, yes it can be but WillAid is every November and you can get a basic will written up for a small charity donation. A basic will is better than no will in my eyes. And why would you want to put your family and children through any added stresses when dealing with a loss of a parent can be hard enough.

[Minnie43]

Hubby and I bit the bullet and got our wills done a couple of years ago, not a nice subject, together with the quite considerable cost probably puts a lot of people off doing it.
We were scared into it really as had heard horror stories about being 'intestate' which can cause a financial nightmare for the children and wanted to do the right thing.
When it came down to getting a will, we thought about one of the free/bargain ones, but in the end chickened out as wanted to do things properly and not 'cheap out' on something so important, in the end getting our local solicitor to write and store it in their vault. It was expensive, I try not to think about any of it.

[RebeccaEMumsnet]

This thread is now closed, thanks for all of your comments!

The winner of the prize draw is Ikea1234

[MSHGW]

I haven't written a will yet, and what puts me off is that it seems too complicated for me to do without the help of a solicitor, but I never have the money spare to go see one and get it sorted.

[Robertgeneralmail]

It's the time and cost that so far has stopped us. We know it's important but it's hard to juggle with a little one.

[rocketriffs]

Never felt the need to organise a will, just going by some of my nearest and dearest who passed without making a will either. Whatever I leave will be divided equally amongst my children, as has been the case for generations in my family.

[peanutmum111]

We have done wills in the past but now need a new one.
It is important to keep up to date as life changes.
We now have 2 grandsons, who need looking after.
Everything has become more urgent as I'm having major heart surgery so it can't be left any longer

[selloveday]

We haven't made our wills yet but know we need to. It's just one of those things you don't really want to discuss.

[Kangakate]

I think wills are a great idea, but it can be really confusing about where to get it from and if the do at home wills are ok. As I'm married I know that everything will automatically go to my partner, but we need to do one if something happens to both of us

[flozza42]

We made our Wills when we married it's peace of mind in case anything happens and as I work for a solicitor I did get them for free!