A recent survey revealed that 67 per cent of people questioned did not know where to find their parent’s wills. Marie Tisdale, head of wills and probate at Ansons Solicitors in Staffordshire, explains what you can do to help your relatives keep track of the whereabouts of your will.

If you have gone to the trouble of making a will you want to be certain that your up-to-date will is found when you die so your wishes can be carried out. That is why Ansons Solicitors in Cannock and Lichfield provide the extra service of registering your will with the Certainty national will register.

Certainty provide and maintain a voluntary national wills database. The data is secure and a search will only show the name of the person who made the will, when it was made and where it is stored. The register does not see or hold a copy of your will.

Once your will is registered, your family can quickly and easily locate where your original will is stored when they need to. Finding your latest will ensures that your wishes are carried out and your estate is distributed in the way you intend. If an original copy of will cannot be found then your relatives would have no option but to distribute your estate under the intestacy rules, which may not necessarily be in the way that you want.

Whether you will be making your will soon, or have already done so, speak to Ansons Solicitors about registering your will. We are members of Certainty and we will be more than happy to help you register your will or locate a missing will.

For more information on registering or making a will, contact Marie Tisdale on 01543 267 98 or email mtisdale@ansons.law. Ansons Solicitors have offices in Cannock and Lichfield, Staffordshire.