Is Will Writing Regulated in the UK?
No. And the profession has been arguing about whether it should be for well over a decade. Here is where it actually stands, and what a sensible practitioner does in the meantime.
Project Will · Published 14 September 2026
No. Will writing is not a reserved legal activity under the Legal Services Act 2007 in England and Wales. There is no regulator, no compulsory qualification, no mandatory insurance and no obligatory register. Anyone may lawfully draft wills for payment.
What that means in practice#
A person can decide on a Monday that they write wills and take instructions on a Tuesday. There is no supervisory body to complain to, no compensation fund, and no ombudsman route unless the practitioner happens to belong to a voluntary scheme that provides one.
Compare that with a solicitor, who is regulated by the SRA, must hold minimum-terms professional indemnity insurance, contributes to a compensation fund, and is answerable to the Legal Ombudsman.
The boundary people cross without noticing#
Drafting the will: not reserved. Storing it: not reserved. Advising on trusts: not reserved.
Applying for a grant of probate for a fee: reserved. Doing that without authorisation is a criminal offence. It is the single most common way a will writing business strays over the line — usually by drifting from "helping the family" into charging for it.
How we got here#
The Legal Services Board recommended in 2013 that will writing be made a reserved activity, following research including shadow-shopping exercises that found significant quality problems across both regulated and unregulated providers. The then Lord Chancellor declined to implement it.
Since then the Competition and Markets Authority has examined unregulated legal services more broadly and has generally favoured improving consumer information, transparency of price and service, and access to redress, rather than extending reservation. Consumer organisations continue to argue for regulation.
The practical position for a practitioner: it has not happened, it keeps being raised, and it would be unwise to build a business that only works while nobody is looking.
What a sensible practitioner does anyway#
Professional indemnity insurance. Not required. Do not practise without it.
ICO registration. This one is legally required — you process personal data.
Training. No one will make you. Project Will's is free and UKRLP-registered, UKPRN 10101187.
Accreditation with a public register. In a market where a client cannot tell one practitioner from another, being verifiable is the differentiator. Project Will's accreditation is free, with no annual renewal.
A written complaints procedure. Give clients a route that is not "sue me".
Transparent pricing. The CMA's consistent theme across this sector is price and service transparency. Publishing your fees is both good practice and good positioning.
Do not call yourself regulated. You are not, and a trading standards officer or a competitor will eventually notice.
Scotland and Northern Ireland#
Different jurisdictions with their own arrangements and, in Scotland, a materially different succession law including legal rights. Do not assume the English position applies.
Related#
Do you need qualifications to write wills? · What is a will writer? · Testamentary capacity · Training
Before you ask.
Is will writing regulated in the UK?
No. In England and Wales, will writing is not a reserved legal activity under the Legal Services Act 2007, so there is no regulator, no compulsory qualification and no mandatory register. Anyone may lawfully draft wills for payment. Applying for a grant of probate for a fee is a different matter — that is reserved.
Has anyone tried to regulate it?
Yes, repeatedly. The Legal Services Board recommended in 2013 that will writing be made a reserved activity; the then Lord Chancellor declined. The Competition and Markets Authority has since examined unregulated legal services and favoured better information and redress over full regulation. Consumer groups continue to press the point.
Should I be regulated voluntarily?
You cannot be — voluntary bodies are not regulators and describing yourself as regulated would be misleading. What you can do is hold accreditation, carry professional indemnity insurance, offer a complaints route and be verifiable. In an unregulated market those are your differentiators.
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