• March 28, 2024
 Meeting The Surge In Demand

Meeting The Surge In Demand

If there is one thing the coronavirus pandemic has proved to us all it that life is precious. It’s therefore little wonder that the lesson has resulted in a surge in demand for wills.

Here Peter de vena Franks from Will Aid explains why it is expecting to be inundated at the start of its will-writing campaign this November – and appeals to solicitors for help. 

Protecting ourselves has become an important part of life in lockdown. The social isolating, the constant handwashingthe avoidance of public transport, crowds, even hugs off your nearest and dearest. We are all striving to stay safe and to prepare for worst case scenarios. 

Understandably, that protection has also extended to an increase in people drawing up wills. 

Indeed, the likes of NHS workers and police officers were told to put their affairs in order as precaution for their hard work on the frontline during the Covid-19 pandemic and other solicitors have reported a 70% increase in enquiries in the last three months. 

Here at Will Aid, the charity will-writing campaign, we have also seen a rise in enquiries – with people looking to book a slot when we open for business in November. 

These people, who want to prepare this vital piece of paperwork to ensure their wishes are met and their loved ones are protected, are also seeing the scheme as a chance to give back to some of the charities and vulnerable people who have been hit hardest by the pandemic. 

Will Aid works by linking people who want wills with participating solicitors around the UK.  

Every November these solicitors give up a proportion of their time and instead of taking a fee for writing straight forward wills, ask clients to make a voluntary donation to Will Aid instead – the money raised is then split between the nine Will Aid charities. 

This year we urgently need more solicitors to sign up and take part to meet the unprecedented interest. 

Hopefully, come November, things will have got a little more ‘normal’ and you will not be signing paperwork on car bonnets with neighbours posing as witnesses peeking over the fences. 

And you’ll be in a position to take part in the campaign. Even just a handful of instructions written under Will Aid would make a real difference to the vital work of our partner charities. 

We make it easy for you – doing everything to help ensure you can focus on just writing wills. 

We’re also developing a new, enhanced version of our online booking system – an increasingly popular way for firms to manage their Will Aid clients.  

This will help to ease the burden of managing enquiries – from reducing the number emails your team need to manage, to automatically sending reminders before appointments.  

On top of that, we work hard to make sure you receive more quality enquiries. We appreciate that your time is money and the last thing you want is a ‘no show’ or someone that doesn’t understand what Will Aid includes. 

With this in mind, we’re carrying out an end-to-end review of every single step of the client journey to reinforce how the scheme works and that by donating, they’re helping to make the world a better place.  

Our Will Aid Community allows you to connect with likeminded firms, share insights – both about Will Aid and the wider legal sector – and have access to advice and tools to get even more from the business opportunity that Will Aid offers. 

It’s also a place to work out how to make the most of the benefits to solicitors who take part. 

Aside from helping deliver the vital work of the charities involved, this is an opportunity for you to expand your business network, meet new clients, receive a PR boost and tick your pro bono boxes.  

It’s also your chance to help people get a will in place – something which the recent pandemic has made us all realise is very important. 

To find out more visit www.willaid.org.uk. 

David Opie

Director of Marketing & Strategy at Practical Vision Limited inc. Solve Legal Marketing, Lawyer Checker & The Move Exchange.