The article by Marie Granby raised a wry smile. I have come across will-writers who have gone bust, or lost the will(s). On another occasion the will-writer had inadvertently directed a testator’s residue to his (second) wife instead of to his son. Solicitors appointed by the son wrote to complain that the intention was that the son should receive the residue.

When writing to say that the will failed to achieve such an intention, I resisted the temptation to include in my reply that this illustrated the peril of using a will-writer, lest a claim for rectification should be made. The most extreme example involved wills for a youngish couple. They were quoted £100, about what a solicitor should have charged at the time. When the final bill came, with add-ons it was £2,800, which was required before ‘we execute’ the wills. I told the will-writing company to get lost.

Preparation of wills should be a reserved activity.

Robert H Foster, FosterLaw, Skipton