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The Legal Services Board (LSB) has begun a mystery shopping exercise to determine if the will writing industry - which remains unregulated - requires closer policing.
The LSB, which regulates lawyers in England and Wales, has sent 100 'clients' to solicitors - who currently perform about 85% of will writing in the UK - and the same number to unregulated businesses to find out what kind of service customers are getting.
It will assess its findings next month before determining whether there is a "systemic" problem in the market.
Chris Kenny, LSB chief executive, said: "Solicitors carry out the vast majority of will writing, and they say it is a scandal that it is unregulated and that anybody can offer these services.
"However, they have not put forward any compelling evidence to that effect. So we are taking a look for ourselves."
Anyone can offer will writing services with no training or qualifications.
Parliament decided against regulating the industry during the passage of the Legal Services Act 2007.
According to The Times, the initial findings of the LSB's mystery shopping probe are worrying.
It claims the quality of wills assessed so far has been found to be extremely poor.
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Agree it is a scandal
I agree that Will writing being unregulated is a scandal. I am a Financial Adviser and took on will writing to meet demand from my clients and to avoid having to refer them out. We have seen an equal number of problems with Solicitors and unregulated will writers writing bad wills. The Institute of Professional Willwriters (of which I am an associate) has an OFT backed complaints code, insists on mandatory training and mandatory PI Insurance. In addition only full members can draft wills. Speaking for the IPW members I know we all actively want regulation of will writing because we are professionals and want to do a professional job. Both Solicitors and Willwriters need to be regulated equally with the same level of consumer protection if it goes wrong.
Posted by: Stephen Yates
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will writers
I have 2 examples of these people having little knowledge/ripping people off: one told a client that if he left his money to 5 different people he would avoid IHT! another persuaded my hairdresser and her husband, in their 30's, no IHT liability, 3 kids, to change their house ownership to tenants in common, each leave their own half to the kids (to avoid their non-existent IHT problem) and charged them over £700. I always advise clients to see a solicitor.
Posted by: paul shilling