Terms of Business
Definitions:
The Term, ‘the Company’, shall mean The Will Company
The Term, ‘the Agent’, shall mean the Instruction Taker
The Term, ‘the Society’ shall mean The Society of Will Writers and Estate Planning Practitioners
For the purposes herein, Will or Wills shall include any other document as is prepared in accordance with your instructions.
1. Procedures
(a) On the initial appointment, the Agent shall take your detailed instructions and give appropriate advice on matters relating to the preparation of your Will(s). Any queries or questions will be answered and a full explanation given on the contents and terminology used in the drafting of your Will(s).
2. The Company undertakes to:
a) To provide you and the Agent with the best advice on matters relating to the preparation of your Will(s).
b) To dispatch your draft Will(s), by first class post, to the Agent, within 14 days of receiving your initial instructions from the Agent. However, where circumstances occur which are outside of the Company’s control which will result in a delay beyond this period, the Agent will be given a full written explanation and the documents produced as soon as is possible. In any event the Company shall produce and dispatch the draft Will(s) to the Agent within 30 days of receiving the initial instruction.
c) To maintain the strictest confidentiality and not to pass on any name or details to any other organisation without your express written permission. The Company is registered under the Data Protection Act 1984, and therefore all information disclosed to us will remain totally confidential.
d) The Company undertakes to refund any money paid in respect of the preparation of your Will(s) to the Agent or you, should you change your mind within 10 days from the date of receiving your instructions. However the Company reserves the right to charge you for the advice given and for any work already carried out on your behalf and in accordance with your signed instructions.
e) The signing of your Will(s) (the Execution) must be carried out according to the law of England and Wales in order for your Will(s) to be valid. All Will(s) will be supplied to you with full written instructions of how these should be completed.
f) Where the Company offers a Will Storage service, the Company does not accept any liability or obligation to advise you of any changes in legislation or taxation which may affect you either directly or indirectly and may necessitate a review of your Will(s). Any Will should be reviewed every three years and on the occasion of any material change in your circumstances, such as divorce, marriage, the birth of children, or the inheritance of a large sum of money etc.
3. Your Obligations are:
a) In order for the Company to provide accurate advice and to produce an effective legal document you are required to disclose to the Agent all relevant facts and answers to all questions asked. The Company shall not accept liability in respect of information which was not disclosed, and therefore not documented by the Agent, and which comes to light at a later date as being of relevance and which may effect the validity or content of your Will(s), or advice given.
b) To read through your Will(s), and other documents provided, to confirm that the Will(s) correctly reflects your wishes as to the distribution of your estate and that the names and addresses of the persons mentioned in your Will(s) are correct, adding any missing data not supplied at the time of taking your instructions.
c) It is your responsibility to return the documents together with any amendments to the Company within ten days of receipt. If you fail to return the documents to the Company, the Company shall accept no liability for the Will(s).
d) The Company shall not be responsible for any delay due to your failure to comply with the above.
e) To notify the Company if you do not receive your Will(s) within two weeks of the first appointment, unless otherwise agreed.
f) To pay the Will Writing fee in full on the date of the first appointment. The fees for other services may, by agreement, be paid on completion.
4. Client Care
a) The Company is committed to providing you with a high quality service. An essential part of that service is that we will communicate effectively with you and that you are kept informed of progress.
b) The Company operates a full Customer Care Service of which all our staff are fully aware and the Company maintains a full complaints procedure to which any complaint should first of all be addressed. If the matter is unable to be resolved to your satisfaction you may refer it, in writing, to The Director General, The Society of Will Writers. Eagle House Exchange Road Lincoln LN6 3JZ
c) The Company complies with the Society’s Code of Practice of which a copy is available upon request.
d) Where advice has been given in relation to Inheritance Tax Planning the Company will endeavour to keep you up to date of changes in legislation which alter the effectiveness of these schemes and inform you when they are no longer appropriate to be used, at which time the Company will endeavour to offer alternatives, if there are any available. The Company does not take any responsibility if this advice is not adhered to by you.
