Will & Probate Services – Selling magic beans

Selling Magic Beans

ADVICE FROM NICK ASH, MANAGING DIRECTOR AT WILL AND PROBATE SERVICES

In my role on the Professional Standards Board of the Society of Will Writers, I get to see the very best, and the very worst, of my industry, especially given that my brief is to deal with complaints against members. The society has over 2,500 members and the fact that they are members tends to mean that they are the more reputable practitioners in the sector.

But there is a worrying trend that I have spotted and that is the number of people who sell lifetime products or storage products to clients at hugely inflated prices. These products tend to make promises of benefits in the future that are of dubious value.

Two examples that I have come across recently highlight the issue perfectly. In one case, a ninetyyear-old client was sold a lifetime storage product which guaranteed that all updates to her will would be free; she would have access to discounts on future purchases and a guarantee that the firm would only charge 3% of her gross estate to her family if they were instructed to do probate in the future.

The cost of the plan - £3,000! The value in that plan was nil – guaranteeing probate costs at 3% was the company guaranteeing itself that it could charge her family an extra £10,500 when she died, for a job that should cost in the region of £2,500. Sadly, whilst unscrupulous, the firm did nothing illegal in selling her the product. Fortunately, we were able to get her a full refund in this case, but there will be hundreds, if not thousands, of people who have been convinced to buy this worthless product, especially given that the London-based firm comes up high in the adverts on Google when you search for a ‘will writer’.

In the second case, a client purchased a storage product from a firm, this time registered in Peterborough. The fee was £12 per year, per document; in this case, there were no bells nor whistles, just a promise of an unspecified discount

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on future purchases. On the face of it, that seems reasonable, but when you consider that the client purchased two wills, four Lasting Powers of Attorney, with associated documentation, they ended up being asked to fork out £96 plus VAT (£115.20) per year in storage fees. This is for a service that is little more than putting some documents in an envelope and keeping them in a safe place! Now don’t get me wrong, it is not unreasonable to charge for document storage; it is becoming more and more expensive for us to source secure storage space. Our ‘Foreversafe’ product charges £25 per year for an individual (or £35 for a couple) to store their documents with us. For that, you get your documents stored; we will store your deeds; give you access to a free legal advice line; and when you die (if your family chooses to instruct us to do the probate on your estate) we will discount our fee by an amount equivalent to the storage fees you have already paid us. I guess what I am saying is that when you are making a decision about who to trust with your planning, it might be worth asking them the cost of their lifetime plan or storage fees before you start. The answer might be telling! Or just call us on 01778 382723 and let us help you

Will and Probate Services | Suite 24 | Eventus Sunderland Road | Market Deeping | Peterborough | PE6 8FD Telephone: 01778 382723

and your family.

E-mail: advice@will-probate.co.uk