Must Read - Instructions For Executing Your Will
There are certain formal procedures you have to follow to make your Will legally valid. If your Will is invalid then your estate may not pass as you intend.
A Will Witness must be:
- Over the age of 18
- Of Sound Mind
- Able to see and read English
- Not a beneficiary or potential beneficiary of the Will
- Not married to a beneficiary or potential beneficiary of the Will
A Will Witness must NOT be:
- a beneficiary to your Will or their spouse or civil partner
- your Executors, Trustees, Guardians or their spouse/civil partner
- anyone of unsound mind
- a blind person
- someone who cannot read and understand English
Process to sign your Will:
In the presence of your 2 witnesses and in the spaces provided:
1. Date your Will
2. Sign your Will using your usual signature on the last page on the dotted line that states "Signature of Testator".
3. Ask your 2 witnesses to add their usual signatures on the last page where provided and ask them to print their names, occupations and their addresses clearly for identification purposes.
4. If any mistakes are made, do not use correction fluid (e.g. Tipex). Instead, please cross through the mistake and amend, sign the amendment and then ask your two witnesses to both sign the amendment. This will ensure a valid Will however we don't encourage Wills with handwritten amendments in and so please contact us and we will provide a replacement Will for you to sign.
Common Mistakes When Witnessing
- Forgetting to sign your Will
- Witnesses not signing
- Using witnesses who are also beneficiaries or spouse/civil partners of beneficiaries
- Forgetting to date
- Not having BOTH witnesses present when signing your Will - you cannot ask one to sign and then another a bit later when they get home from work for example.
- Witnesses being present when you sign but not actually watching you sign - your signature must be in the line of sight of both witnesses at the specific moment when you sign your Will
- DO NOT PIN OR CLIP ANY LETTER OR NOTE TO YOUR WILL - even if removed, the paper may show an indentation suggesting something has been removed from the Will which may well see your Will declared as invalid.
Need help with signing your Will?
If you would like help in signing your Will please refer initially to the covering letter and any signing instructions sent with it.
Pattison James Associates staff members can witness your documents in our head office in Camberley by appointment only. We do not have free parking on-site however there is a mutli-story car park by Camberley Theatre (less than a minute's walk from our office) as well free parking at the opposite end of Portesbery Road though this is a 7-minute walk away from our office.
Pattison James Associates staff members can visit you to act as witness(es) however this service is chargeable at the rate of £75 per witness + £0.40 per mile.
Please note if you sign your Will incorrectly, we will supply the necessary replacement Will for an administration fee of £15 inclusive of VAT.
Download our Will signing instructions here