This is one reason why there should be a warning on any offers of Free Wills or very low priced Wills. Over the last few years there has been a massive increase in the marketing on these so called cheap Wills. Advertising on the internet, via social media, TV & Radio as well as print, it has been difficult to escape the ‘amazing offers’ many companies are pumping out propaganda for, often if not offering a free Will then it is at a reduced price at something like £19.99.

Many of the organisations offering these ‘Free Wills’ are trusted names including national charities for whom the pay off is the fact that money is bequeathed to them in the Will they prepare for you. While leaving money to a charity in a Will is commonplace and generous the down side of this type of Will is that the charity are likely prepare only the most basic of documents without the additional advice needed to make a truly informed statement of your wishes.

It is not just charities, beware also some solicitor firms that offer reduced prices or free Wills. In those cases they will demand or write themselves in as executors, this is where they can make a lot of money ongoing and when the Will is required after death. It is a sad fact of the modern world that even these trusted professions use the marketers tactics to part you from your money in underhanded ways.

A basic Will like this may be acceptable and useful if your estate is less than £10,000, however very few these days are! If you own a property for instance, it is likely that a basic Will may not fulfil the promises made and leave you and your loved ones vulnerable financially. For example, the free or cheap Will may not be sufficient to protect you from having to sell your home to cover care home costs, meaning that loved ones do not benefit as you may have intended. Years of hard work and planning could go to waste because of one ill-informed decision to get a free Will or a cheap Will. Losing everything that was hard earned over such a decision is devastating but it happens every day.