The most common will-writing mistakes - and how to avoid them
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By Jodie Wielgus, Partner for the Private Clients Team at Ramsdens Solicitors
or those in or approaching retirement, two priorities will often emerge - the need to ensure their families will be properly looked after no matter what happens, and the desire to leave behind a lasting legacy. Writing a will is one of the best and most effective ways of achieving both. By writing a will, you can put all of your affairs in proper order, giving you priceless peace of mind in your later years. However, these benefits will quickly be cancelled out if you make a mistake with your will, as this could result in your family and loved ones not getting the protection they deserve. This is why it is so important to avoid the most common mistakes that stop people from creating the comprehensive, fully thought-out and legally binding wills they need. Here, the expert probate, wills and trusts solicitors at Ramsdens have created a guide to ten frequent will-writing errors to watch out for - with advice on how you can make sure you avoid them.
1. Forgetting to include all of your assets THE MISTAKE: In order to ensure your various belongings and assets - collectively known as your estate - are distributed to your preferred beneficiaries after you die, you must remember to specifically include all of them in your will.
It’s easy enough to remember to include your most obviously valuable assets, such as your money, house or expensive heirlooms; other less tangible assets are easier to forget about, such as your bank accounts, shares and premium bonds. Additionally, it’s common to neglect to include any stipulations about your digital assets and online accounts - for example, whether you want your social media profiles to be deleted after you are gone. THE SOLUTION: You will need to be as comprehensive as possible when writing your will, including any and all assets you can think of, especially those for which you have specific intentions. By speaking to a legal expert who specialises in will writing, you will be able to get guidance on everything to include, and feedback on whether the will you’ve written covers everything it should.
2. Being overly specific when describing your assets THE MISTAKE: Although it’s usually better to be specific when writing legal documents to avoid any ambiguity, there can be instances when writing a will where being too specific can create problems. For example, if you include a car in your will and specify its name and model, it
Legacy Yearbook 2021 page 4
