Avoid Common DIY Will Mistakes That Could Cost Your Loved Ones Thousands
DIY Wills are commonly used in Australia and particularly in New South Wales by people or persons that do not wish to spend funds on having a proper estate plan and Will drafted by a lawyer.
While DIY kits and in particular online Wills are becoming increasingly popular, so are applications before the court when Wills are deemed to be invalid or informal because of a number of significant errors.
The main issues with DIY Wills are:
- Wills that are found to be invalid or informal are often not drafted or executed properly. This means that at the time the Will was signed using a DIY kit the person either did not have 2 witnesses present or did not use witnesses that are appropriate for execution of the Will. These very simple errors in execution that can and often do render DIY Wills invalid, meaning that loved ones then have to proceed with additional costs after the testator dies.
- DIY Wills often fail to appoint an executor which is a very important appointment in any Will and estate plan. This is particularly so with DIY Wills that are obtained from the post office or downloaded online and do not have proper instructions contained within them. This leads to a situation where loved ones need to make an application for an executor and cost several thousand of dollars that could have easily been avoided.
- DIY Wills cannot attest to the capacity and mental capacity of the person signing the Will and as a result leave the estate in a situation where the Will can be challenged due to lack of capacity after the testator dies. One important step that a lawyer will always undertake is to verify capacity of their client when completing an estate plan including the drafting of a Will and other important estate documents. Unfortunately, with DIY Wills this step does not occur and as a result there are now an increasing number of matters before the court where the estate is facing a challenge from one or more beneficiaries in relation to the capacity of the person at the time the DIY Will was executed.
Given that a simple Will starts from as little as $500 plus GST it is a very small expense to pay to prevent costly mistakes occurring when drafting an estate plan and Will.
In the event a Will is found invalid or informal this means that the wishes of the person that is drafting the Will at that time may not be given effect as the legislation will be followed. It also means that loved ones have a more onerous task in having to administer the estate in the absence of a Will and it can in some cases cost thousands more than anticipated.
DIY Will kits are gaining increasing popularity but at the same time are causing significant concern for practitioners that work in the area of Wills and estates because of the increasing number of issues and errors that are arising in the drafting of these type of documents. It is always recommended to consult a law firm that works in the estate area and has experience in these type of matters to ensure that your Will is drafted correctly.