Velati

Updating an existing will

If your life has changed, your will should too.

An old will is sometimes worse than no will. The Wills Act 1837 (s.21) prevents you from changing a will by hand once it's signed — any pencilled-in note is legally ignored. If something material has changed — you've had a child, separated, lost someone, bought a house, sold a business — the right move is a new will that revokes the old one. Velati makes that the default.

Start your will — £95See pricing

Built for

You've made one before. Life's moved on.

Velati's questionnaire branches around your situation. The questions you'll answer — and skip — were designed specifically for updating an existing will.

The reality

What 'updating' actually means

There are two ways to change a will: a codicil (a short supplementary document executed with the same Wills Act formalities), or a new will that explicitly revokes the old one. For almost every change worth making, a new will is the cleaner path — it leaves no ambiguity about which document is operative. Velati always produces a will that begins 'I REVOKE all wills and codicils previously made by me.' The signing pack tells you to physically destroy the old original after the new one is signed (s.20 Wills Act 1837 — only burning, tearing or otherwise destroying with intent to revoke counts).

What Velati does for you

Three things, deliberately, well.

  • 01

    Upload your existing will

    We don't need it to draft the new one — but uploading it (read-only) lets us flag clauses that need a fresh decision: appointed executors, named guardians, specific bequests of items you may no longer own.

  • 02

    Explicit revocation, every time

    Every Velati will starts with an unambiguous revocation clause. There is never a question of which will applies — it is always the most recent one, properly signed.

  • 03

    Destroy the old one — properly

    The signing pack tells you to tear, shred or burn the old original yourself, in the presence of one of your witnesses. A photocopy is not enough; the law looks at the original. We script it.

A worked example

What your will actually says, in plain English.

Before you pay anything, Velati shows you this screen — your will, written so you can read it. This is a non-personalised example for updating an existing will. Your real review will use your real names and decisions.

velati / drafts / your-review.pdf

Plain-English review

Your will, in plain English

This is what your will actually does — written so you can read it without a lawyer.

For the will of

Maria Catherine O'Brien

  • Clause 01"This will replaces my 2017 will entirely."

    The new will opens with an express revocation clause. From the moment it's signed, the old will has no legal effect. We tell you how to destroy the original.

  • Clause 02"The executor I named in 2017 isn't the right person any more."

    You've replaced your previous executor with two new ones — your brother Theo Lansing and your colleague Sara Brennan. Both have confirmed they'll act.

  • Clause 03"My daughter Eve, born last year, is now included."

    Eve is named in the residuary clause alongside your existing children. The class gift would also have caught her, but naming her removes any doubt.

You'll see this screen before you pay. Nothing is final until you've read it.

Common questions

Things people ask before they start.

  • Why not just write on the old one?

    Because it doesn't work. Section 21 of the Wills Act 1837 says any handwritten alteration after signing is ignored unless it's executed with the same formalities as the will itself. A new will is faster, cleaner, and definitively legally effective.

  • Do I need to tell my old solicitor?

    Not legally. But if your old solicitor stored the original, you do need to retrieve it so it can be destroyed. We give you a template letter for that.

  • What if I just want to add one small thing?

    A codicil is an option for a single, narrowly defined change (e.g. swapping one executor). Velati prefers a new will because it's safer — codicils sit alongside the original document and create the risk of conflict. The price is the same either way.

Not quite your situation?

Read the page that fits you better.

Replace the old will. Properly. In about twenty minutes.

Twenty minutes. £95. Done before bedtime.

Start your willRead the Velati guide first