A Will That Was Not Signed Correctly

A will that does not meet the signing and witnessing rules is not a will at all, however clear the wishes in it are. This is the easiest ground to avoid and, in practice, one of the hardest to run, because the law leans heavily towards a will that looks properly signed.

What does the law require?

The rules are in section 9 of the Wills Act 1837. A will is not valid unless all of this is true:

• It is in writing, and signed by the person making it, or by someone else in their presence and at their direction.
• It looks like they meant that signature to make the will work.
• They sign it, or confirm their signature, in front of two or more witnesses who are there at the same time.
• Each witness then signs the will, or confirms their signature, in front of the person making it.

Look at the order in the third and fourth points. Both witnesses have to be there together when the will-maker signs or confirms their signature. A will signed in front of one witness in the morning and another in the afternoon does not work.

Our guide to signing and executing a will takes you through it step by step.

Can a will still be witnessed by video?

No. There was a temporary rule allowing witnessing over video call, but it only covered wills made between 31 January 2020 and 31 January 2024. That window has closed. Witnesses have to be there in person.

How hard is it to prove a will was not signed properly?

Hard, if the will has a proper attestation clause. That is the paragraph at the end confirming it was signed and witnessed correctly. Where a will looks right on its face, the law assumes it was signed properly, and the witnesses are taken to have done what the clause and their signatures say they did.

In Sherrington v Sherrington (2005) the Court of Appeal said it takes the strongest evidence to shift that assumption, and reversed a trial judge who had found the will invalid. The reason is practical: without a strong presumption there would be enormous uncertainty in proving wills, because witnesses are often untraceable or dead by the time a dispute starts.

So a witness who later says they do not remember being there will rarely be enough on its own.

What if someone else signed for them?

The Act allows it. A will can be signed by another person in the will-maker's presence and at their direction. But "at their direction" means something specific. In Barrett v Bem (2012) the Court of Appeal set the bar: there has to be a positive and discernible communication, spoken or otherwise, that the person wanted the will signed for them.

Not objecting is not a direction. There has to be something positive, in the nature of an instruction, rather than just a failure to protest. Our write-up of the will that was filmed deals with a case turning on exactly this.

What happens if a beneficiary witnesses the will?

Here is the bit people get wrong. Under section 15 of the Wills Act 1837, if a beneficiary, or their husband, wife or civil partner, witnesses the will, the gift to them fails but the will itself stays valid. Everything else in the will works as written, and the witness can still give evidence that the will was signed properly.

So an inheritance can be lost through an admin slip that has nothing to do with what anyone intended. See who can witness a will for who to ask and who to avoid.

What about a mistake in the wording?

That is a different remedy. Under section 20 of the Administration of Justice Act 1982 the court can correct a will that fails to do what the will-maker wanted. That covers a clerical error, or the person preparing it misunderstanding the instructions. This fixes the document rather than throwing it out.

There is a strict deadline: six months from the date representation is first taken out, unless the court allows a later application.

What should you do about it?

If you are making a will, this one is entirely avoidable. Follow the signing instructions exactly, use two independent adult witnesses who get nothing under the will, and have the document checked by a solicitor. See protecting your will from a challenge.

If you think a will was not signed properly, you will need evidence strong enough to shift the presumption. See how to challenge a will, and the overview of legal challenges to wills for the other grounds.

This article is for general information and is not legal advice. If you are worried about how a will was signed or witnessed, please get in touch for advice on your own situation.

Sources

• Wills Act 1837, section 9 (signing and attestation) on legislation.gov.uk
• Wills Act 1837, section 15 (gifts to an attesting witness) on legislation.gov.uk
• Administration of Justice Act 1982, section 20 (rectification) on legislation.gov.uk
• Sherrington v Sherrington [2005] EWCA Civ 326 on Find Case Law, The National Archives
• Barrett v Bem [2012] EWCA Civ 52 on Find Case Law, The National Archives