Will Aid: An Overview
Nicholas Hall
Davenport Lyons took part in the 2010 Will Aid campaign that started in November last year. It offered the opportunity for members of the public to have their wills drawn up by Davenport Lyons’ Private Client and Wealth Management team who were offering their services for a charitable donation.
Davenport Lyons took the instruction and drafted and executed the will for the client and then collected in the monies for charity. We raised £7,000 for Will Aid with Nick Hall having raised £16,000 over the last two Will Aid Sessions. He is featured on the Will Aid Website [link] for Davenport Lyons. The Will Aid campaign benefits the 9 charities that have signed up with Will Aid: ActionAid, Age UK, British Red Cross, Christian Aid, NSPCC, Save the Children, Sightsavers, SCIAF (Scotland) and Trocaire (N Ireland).
Davenport Lyons has been delighted to be involved with this scheme for the first time and with Nick joining back in November and the department’s efforts we have brought peace of mind to many people who were otherwise intestate and we benefitted charity at the same time. The firm’s Corporate Social Responsibility policy and work supporting its local community in Westminster has been enhanced with this extra and quite demanding yet rewarding work.
Of course if you need a will then do not wait until November. It is worth bearing in mind that 7 out of 10 people do not have a will which can enable all your affairs to be put in order. The scheme is designed to cover the preparation of a simple will but at least by seeing a solicitor here you can know what can (or can’t) be done and what may require further advice.
With the additional power of “gift aid” we can increase the value of donations at no cost to the client because for every £1 donated charities can gain 25 pence (providing the client has paid either income or capital gains tax). Davenport Lyons can process the forms when the client is seen.
November 2011 saw Davenport Lyons take almost 300 instructions in 4 weeks, bringing in clients from across the West End. A wide range of good quality clients came through our doors for the first time and were impressed with the private client team’s efficient and friendly approach. Every single client requested we store their wills and some asked for title deeds and family documents to be stored with the will too at DL. Other instructions have been taken for property work and business advice since. Some clients also had discovered they had outdated or ineffective wills but issues were solved and clients left knowing they were “up to date” as one put it. They will be back and in the meantime we have increased our awareness in the local community.
A wide cross-section of people came through our doors including those from the film and tv industry (directors and company owners), actors and actresses, doctors, accountants, solicitors, designers, dancers, musicians, marketing and PR managers, expectant mums and concerned dads, stockbrokers and those working in financial markets, artists, UN officials passing through London, British civil servants, bankers, financial advisors, retired people wanting to update old wills, vicars, charity managers, diplomats and local embassy staff working in Whitehall and Mayfair.
Through the Will Aid scheme we have promoted Davenport Lyons locally and nationally and our new clients have already gone on to recommend us. If you need a will or an update “m.o.t.” then please contact Nicholas Hall in the Private Client and Wealth Management team.
The Team:
Private Client and Wealth Management
