Lawyers witnessing wills in Lancashire . . . through the kitchen window

One Preston lawyer revealed how he called on a lady who was self-isolating with an underlying health issue to watch from outside as she put her signature on the document.

“The Government has relaxed the rules on a few things but for witnessing a will there is no way round it,” explained Simon Ainsworth, a partner at the firm law firm Napthens.

“A will needs to be witnessed by two people who must together be ‘present’ when the person making the will signs. In this case the witnesses must be physically present so doing it via a video-link is not acceptable and would make the will invalid.

“The difficulty for some people comes when they are self-isolating and cannot physically ask someone else to witness their will for them.Even those not residing alone and living with close relatives may struggle as a beneficiary under a will cannot also be a witness.”

Solicitors are continuing to work during the crisis using technology to obey the social distancing regulations.

Napthens, whose branches include Blackburn and Blackpool, say they are using systems like Skype, Facetime and WhatsApp to take instructions and give advice.

“With the diverse formats of technology, we have been able to adapt our services to make sure there is a continuity of service for our clients and others wishing to access them,” added Simon.

“We would always ideally like to meet our clients face to face when making a will to assess mental capacity and to ensure there has been no undue influence from a third party. Given the current situation we are using our imagination.”