Free Wills and Estate Planning Advice Clinic

Our Wills advice clinic gives your company a useful, free (and often unexpected) service that you can offer to your staff. We know from over a decade’s experience that an up-to-date Will provides peace of mind. And studies show that contented employees are more productive. 

Are you a forward-thinking employer who wants to offer valuable employee benefits and support?

Most employees are at work during a traditional law firm’s weekday opening hours, and are often very busy outside work. A handful of people also think they’ll easily be able to make arrangements after they have retired, without considering this may well be too late. 

Our free surgery allows your employees to discuss their personal situation in confidence and decide how they wish to go ahead. We explain that making a Will is not expensive and it doesn’t take long to have a Will drafted or reviewed. We also explain the benefits of Lasting Powers of Attorney and the issues and costs that arise if there’s no LPA in place when it’s needed.

Over 20 million people in the UK have an up-to-date Will in place. Even these people need to regularly review their Wills, as some major life events (for instance a death or a divorce) may mean they want to make changes, or could even invalidate the Will.

Carisma Wills provides free Wills advice sessions for employers in Staffordshire with 4 or more employees. Our Principal, Donna Hames, will visit your company and spend an afternoon (or a whole day or longer depending on the size of your company) talking to and answering your employee’s questions about Wills. This is the perfect opportunity for them to review their existing Will or find out more about putting one in place.

We provide any promotional materials you feel you need to promote the surgery. You can choose to offer appointment slots for employees or a more informal drop-in clinic. All you need to do is provide us with a suitable room. As a concerned employer you can rest assured that your employees will be getting the best advice about Wills and related documents.

You can arrange your free Wills advice clinic by contacting us on 01538 756166. 

Do you need more information about why a Wills surgery might be important to your employees? Read on…

It is important that every adult with assets or young children has a current Will. If you die without a Will in place, then this causes major problems for all concerned. For instance:

• You have no choice as to who will administer your estate – this is stressful and can lead to arguments between relatives.
• The law dictates who will benefit.
• If you live with someone but you are not married or in a civil partnership, then they will receive nothing (this condition is called intestacy).
• If you have no family, then your estate will automatically pass to the Government.
• It can take months or even years to administer the estate – this can leave your loved ones in serious financial difficulties.

It is also vital that people update an existing Will when something significant changes, such as:

• Marriage
• Divorce
• Death of existing beneficiaries
• Births
• Serious Illnesses
• Buying or Selling Property
• Retirement
• Receiving a large inheritance or winning the lottery
• The inheritance tax system

Here is a real-life example of what can happen:

A lady wrote her Will many years ago when she was living with her partner. She left almost everything to her partner and a small gift to charity. The relationship broke down and they split up a few years before she died, but she never updated her Will. This meant that on her death, the bulk of her estate passed to her former partner. Her family were surprised but felt unable to challenge the Will because of the potential costs. 

So, it is important that you update your Will when things change. It is also a good idea to review your Will periodically, and we would advise you do so every 3-5 years or when there’s a big change in personal circumstances. Most of the time you will read through it and nothing will have changed, but there will come a time when you read through it and think “Oh no, that’s not right,” or “I really should change that bit,” or even “I can’t remember what that part does!”

We can help your employees to review their existing Will as part of the Wills surgery. We invite you to discuss the benefits further and arrange your free Wills surgery by contacting us today.