Looking to make out a will

Hi Ahab ... I assume that you intend to instruct a solicitor to do this for you? And do you intend to make the solicitor sole or joint executor of the will?

Any business that the solicitor transacts on your behalf will normally mean full copies of all documentation being retained securely for I believe seven years. If your solicitor is preparing your will, then he will take your instruction as to how many certified copies should be made. He can then either pass those onto you or at your instruction can file them securely.

Out of interest, why do you ask?

Some solicitor's will charge you for the retention of the will and may deem this to be permission to act as co-executor of your estate and therefore take a % of the overall value.

It is worth resraching into the type of will you may wish to have before discussing this with a solicitor, afterall some may charge a flat rate fee to draw up your will and others may charge you by the hour for their advice and guidance.

A useful source of information is:

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentcitizensandrights/Death/Preparation/DG_10029800

It offers interesting advice and guidance and useful documents. I apologise if you are already aware of this site.

There are routes i do not want my estate to go to Snoopy48 , i worry that the 'will' may go walkabouts/get lost or destroyed by accident, leaving all up for grabs...

Vulture season is never far away in these issues.

Why only retain for seven years?

Hi Ahab, hubby and I made our wills out roughly 15 years ago when we bought our house.

It was a simple and straight forward procedure through a solicitor.

We pay a nominal fee every year for him to keep it locked away in a vault somewhere in the depths of Norwich city.

It's always an emotive time when making out such a document but a necessity if you don't want your worldly goods falling into the wrong hands.

Parchester has supplied a good link for you to be able to do a little groundwork before making your decision.

Many thanks for that Lillie, i have viewed the link supplied by Parchester and have found it very useful indeed.

Found a lot of other interesting data on this site as well regarding other issues...

Good stuff!

I think it's worth investing the money in having a solicitor draw up your will, ensuring that the signing is done correctly and keeping secure copies. I have just reviewed my will having not done so for ten years or so and I thought that it would be a simple process of updating. In fact a number of clauses had to be redrafted and it took some time. Fortunately I agreed a fee with the solicitor in advance as the first quote given by him I considered to be outrageously expensive.

Yes they do. You should lodge your own copy with your bank so that your executor has a fighting chance of finding it.

I heard a story recently about a local guy who was on his deathbed when he called his son to his side, telling him his last will and testament was in the bureau and he must carry out his funeral wishes to the letter and that his body must be cremated locally.

"And, father, what would you like done with your ashes?" asked his son .....

"Well ...... " he replied .... "Put them in a stiff envelope and post them to the Inland Revenue, marking it in big letters .. 'Now you have everything!'"