The Society of Will Writers have had an incredibly busy 2017. We’ve developed a bespoke new software package which is attracting professionals industry wide, launched a host of new courses at the College of Will Writing and seen a growth in membership numbers. In addition to this we’ve been to meetings with the LSB on a number of occasions to discuss the future of the profession, met with the Law Commissioners to discuss the proposed changes to legislation governing Will Writing as well as meeting with other stakeholders like Today’s Wills and Probate (Solve Legal).
One thing our team are incredibly passionate about is supporting our members and assisting the public. We have placed a huge emphasis for 2018 in further developing the assistance we provide to both the public and our membership. Members will have already seen increased levels of support and we’ve widened the range of advice we provide to include rebranding advice/marketing support/basic information on GDPR as well as our technical support. Feedback we receive suggests that members definitely get their money’s worth. If members were to request help once a week then the support would only equate to £5.72, significantly cheaper than an hourly rate from an alternative provider. This advice we provide might help to secure a sale with a client, protect you from legal action, or help grow your business.
2018 is setting itself up to be just as promising as 2017 has been. Will writing firms should prepare for GDPR which comes into force on the 25th May. For those looking for a little more information or guidance as to what the General Data Protection Regulation expects of companies, then the College of Will Writing course ‘GDPR Essentials’ would be a great starting point. You’ll be encouraged to consider what data you hold, how it is held and what action you should take to protect that data, thus reducing your chance of data breach (and the resulting fines).
In 2018 we can also expect a response to the Law Commission consultation paper and the proposals for change in succession legislation. The SWW, like many other professionals and stakeholders, have put forward their views to the proposals and we do expect changes to make the process of having a Will written even more transparent.
As you may have seen in the recent Today’s Wills and Probate article: An interview with Paul Buckle the SWW insurance scheme prices have not increased in 7 years except for the insurance premium tax. Having worked with Paul and Jelf for a good number of years we are looking forward to helping even more members protect their businesses in 2018. For more information on the SWW cover please contact the office using the email address info@willwriters.com.
The SWW plans to work even more closely with its appointed regional representatives to ensure that the group meetings, held locally, are of great value and continue to attract ever greater numbers. If you would like information on the group local to you then please contact sam.s@willwriters.com.
The introduction of the SWW’s Professional Standards Board in 2016, led by Darrell Storey, will no doubt go from strength to strength in 2018. If you would like to have a hand in the standards the board set and the vision for better consumer protection then please contact Darrell by emailing admin@willwriters.com.
The SWW is constantly looking at the profession and striving to drive forward the standards that the consumer can rightly expect. We encourage anyone with an interest in protecting the consumer to talk with us or our standards board. Together we all make a difference.
Happy New Year!
This article was submitted to be published by The Society of Will Writers as part of their advertising agreement with Today’s Wills & Probate. The views expressed in this article are those of the submitter and not those of Today’s Wills & Probate.
