An open letter signed by industry leaders and politicians has called on the government to speed up progress on making digital wills legally valid.
Seven cross-party MPs, including Wera Hobhouse MP, Matt Bishop MP and Ayoub Khan MP have signed the letter. Signatories also include Sarah Williams, CEO of Accord Legal Services, Stephanie Patrick, chief executive of Widowed and Young, and Andrew Byres, founder of SafeKeep.
The open letter forms part of My Last Wish, a new campaign launched by SafeKeep, a digital life vault service. It argues that the current law is old-fashioned and shuts millions of people out of making a valid will.
The campaign calls for secure, properly authenticated electronic wills to be legally recognised, in line with the Law Commission’s May 2025 recommendations, with safeguards built in to protect against fraud and undue influence.
The campaign says around 23 million adults in the UK don’t have a will, with more than £67 million from unclaimed estates going to the government last year because people died intestate. Current rules, the letter argues, exclude many of the people who would benefit most from making a will, including those who are housebound and people living with serious illness.
Despite the Law Commission’s proposals including a draft bill, there is no timetable for reform.
Andrew Byres, co-founder of SafeKeep said: “Having run a funeral care business, I lost count of the families who fell apart at the worst possible moment because there was no will, or there was one but nobody could find it. The law simply has not kept up with how people live today. We can now manage our finances, medical records, and legal documents securely online, yet wills are still governed by rules written nearly 200 years ago.”
Stephanie Patrick, chief executive of Widowed and Young added: “Having a clear, up-to-date will won’t take away the pain of losing a loved one, but it can spare bereaved families unnecessary uncertainty, delays and disputes at a time when they are already facing the unimaginable. Modernising the current system and making it easier for people to create and keep their wills up to date would be a significant step towards reducing that burden.”
The letter is reproduced in full below.
Britain’s wills law is failing millions. It is time to legislate for the digital age.
Sir,
More than 23 million adults in the United Kingdom have no will. When they die, their wishes die with them, and their families inherit confusion and conflict. Last year, £67 million from unclaimed estates passed to the UK government, money that might have reached loved ones had a will been in place.
The law governing this national tragedy is the Wills Act 1837. Passed before the telephone was invented, it demands a wet-ink signature witnessed in person by two people simultaneously present. It disadvantages the elderly, the housebound, and the millions who quite reasonably manage every other aspect of their lives online. This Victorian law makes no sense in 21st century Britain.
A properly authenticated, time-stamped digital will, created on a regulated platform and stored securely, is more trustworthy than a piece of paper signed thirty years ago and forgotten since. It is harder to lose, easier to keep up to date, and accessible to those the current system excludes. Australia, Canada, and multiple American states have begun recognising electronic wills. The Law Commission has consulted and produced provisional proposals for reform.
The consequences of inaction are serious: families face legal uncertainty, avoidable disputes arise with costs running into tens of thousands of pounds, and estates are delayed at the very moment clarity is most needed.
Britain’s families deserve better than a Victorian statute. We urge the government to act now and change the law to recognise digital wills.
Signed:
Andrew Byres Founder, SafeKeep
Sarah Williams CEO, Accord Legal
Stephanie Patrick Chief Executive, Widowed and Young
Nick Adams & Mark Hedley Co-Founders, Adeus Life
Baroness Uddin Co-Chair, APPG on Digital Identity
Ayoub Khan MP Chair, APPG on Funerals, Coroners, and Bereavement
Rt Hon. the Lord Foster of Bath
Lord Michael Cashman
Matt Bishop MP Member, the Justice Committee
Baroness Harris of Richmond Member, APPG on Grief Support and the Impact of Death on Society
Jim Shannon MP Member, APPG on Grief Support and the Impact of Death on Society
Lord Popat Member, APPG on Grief Support and the Impact of Death on Society
Martin Vickers MP Member, APPG on Grief Support and the Impact of Death on Society
Bob Blackman MP
Wera Hobhouse MP
Steve Darling MP
The Baroness Alison Suttie
