Institute of Professional Willwriters

The Institute of Professional Willwriters (IPW) has been in existence since 1991. The Institute is a self-regulatory organisation and its aims are :

To promote the importance of making a Will to the general public
To ensure that the services provided by its members are delivered professionally, ethically and competently
To make representations to government on legislative matters which affect members of the Institute and their clients.

Consumer protection is central to all that the Institute does, and it works directly with such organisations as the Legal Services Board, the Competition and Markets Authority, the Office of the Public Guardian and the Chartered Trading Standards Institute to raise and enforce standards within the sector.

SEARCH: Find an IPW Approved Willwriter (by Postcode)

CERTIFIED

Approved Code of Practice

This is to certify that the published Consumer Code of Practice of the Institute of Professional Willwriters (IPW) was officially granted APPROVED CODE status in 2014. Since then, the relevant provisions, processes and procedures have been continuously monitored and regularly audited by the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI) - the representative body of the UK Trading Standards profession, since 1881, and one of the primary Government-endorsed consumer protection bodies in the United Kingdom - operating on behalf of the Approved Code Scheme (see Code Audit Record, below).

Approved Code Registry :

Code Sector	Professional Services: Willwriting
Code of Practice	Click here to view (pdf opens in new tab)
Year of Approval	2014
Members	277
Last Audited	July 2024
Code Audit Record	IPW Audit 2024 (pdf opens in new tab)

More about the Institute of Professional Willwriters (IPW)

VERIFY A COMPANY : If you want to check that a business displaying the Approved Code Scheme logo is genuinely a member of the scheme, please enter their details in the search box at the top of the page (or use the main search box on the Homepage).

The IPW Code of Practice

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The IPW Code of Practice was established in 2008 as the first (and still, the only) Code of Practice in the Legal Services Sector to be independently endorsed and monitored by a Consumer organisation.

The Code covers the provision of advice and/or documents drafted relating to:

Wills
Powers of Attorney
Advance Decisions
Trusts
storage of documents
the administration of the estate of someone who has died.

The IPW and its members understand that the legal services that IPW members provide are sometimes sought by customers at a stressful time in their lives. Furthermore, the services are not ‘everyday purchases’ and can be complex. The Code of Practice therefore ensures that its members meet the highest standards in every interaction and transaction with customers.

Read the IPW's Code of Practice (pdf)

Why is a Code of Practice so essential in this Sector?

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Not everyone who provides legal services has been trained in law or relevant legal matters. Often things that have gone wrong with the type of transactions that IPW members provide are not found out until many years after a legal service has been provided. By then it’s difficult or impossible to put this right. It’s therefore essential to take every step to ensure things don’t go wrong, but if they do, that there is redress for those affected.

Summary of the IPW Code of Practice

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The IPW Consumer Code of Practice will help members of the public to choose a professional, competent and ethical organisation to help them make a will, administer the affairs of someone after their death or provide specified related legal services. The IPW Code of Practice requires member firms and those working in them to:

- Have a minimum level of skill and to grow and then maintain that skill level
- Provide honest sales and marketing literature
- Pay special attention to the needs of customers
- Provide advice that is independent and in the best interests of the customer
- Provide clear and comprehensive contractual information
- Provide information on how to make a complaint, including information about the IPW Alternative Dispute Resolution service.

Read the IPW's Code of Practice (pdf)

What types of businesses are Members of IPW?

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The businesses that are members of the IPW are managed and staffed by lawyers, highly trained in the legal services. Every staff member who gives legal advice will have been examined to verify their legal knowledge and must undertake ongoing training to keep their skills up to date. We recognise that in many cases, staff members visit customers in their own homes, and therefore all IPW members undergo a Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check. In the unlikely event of anything going wrong, the IPW provides an independent complaints procedure and it is mandatory that IPW members have professional indemnity insurance to compensate for any financial losses that anyone suffers as a result.

How are businesses vetted - before and after joining?

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Everyone who works for an IPW member firm must pass an examination (or provide proof that they have recently passed an equivalent examination). They must then undergo a compliance audit of their documentation and processes to ensure that they are compliant with the IPW requirements of membership and its Code of Practice. IPW member firms receive periodic, ongoing, visits from a member of the IPW Compliance Team to check that what they do and the way that they do it continues to comply with the IPW Code of Practice.

What happens if a business breaks the IPW Code of Practice?

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Breaches of the IPW Code of Practice are rare, but when they do happen, the IPW takes the matter very seriously. If a customer believes that an IPW member firm has breached the IPW Code of Practice, they should notify the IPW immediately at compliance@ipw.org.uk and the IPW will investigate.

If, following investigation, a breach of the IPW Code of Practice is confirmed, the IPW member firm concerned must rectify the breach within a timescale set by the IPW. If the breach is not rectified within the set timescale, or is not rectified to the satisfaction of the IPW, the membership of the firm will be suspended until either the breach is satisfactorily rectified or an independent board decides a different resolution.

Disputes and Complaints

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As a consumer, if you ever enter into a dispute with a business that is a member of the Institute of Professional Willwriters, the business must offer you Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). This is a simpler, cheaper and faster alternative to going to Court. And the adjudications of the independent ADR body are binding on the business (although you are still free to go to Court afterwards).

Offering customers ADR is a mandatory and non-negotiable requirement for membership of the Approved Code Scheme - ensuring that only the best, most customer-centric businesses remain in the scheme. It also acts as a powerful incentive for any member business to treat you with respect, courtesy and fairness, at all times.

IPW's Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) :

Independent ADR Body	Legal Ombudsman
Website	www.legalombudsman.org.uk
Email address	Online Contact Form (opens in new tab)
NOTES

Complain about an IPW Member business

If you feel you have been mistreated by a business that is a member of the Approved Code Scheme, there are steps you can take. In the first instance, please reach out to them - explaining the nature of your complaint in clear and unambiguous language, and mentioning that you are aware of their membership of the Institute of Professional Willwriters and the Approved Code Scheme. In most cases, this approach will ensure your complaint receives proper attention - and, ideally, a resolution will be forthcoming. If you are not happy with the result, they must offer you Alternative Dispute Resolution, or you can request it.

Only if this approach fails to bear fruit should you contact IPW, or their nominated ADR body (see their contact details, above) - who will then do their best to help you resolve your dispute with the business.

IPW's Advice :

Customers should, in the first instance, make their dissatisfaction known to the member firm. Details of how to do this will be in the pre contractual information provided at the start of the transaction, or else from the IPW. IPW member firms have up to 56 days to investigate a complaint and provide a response.

If the response from the IPW member firm is not satisfactory, or a response doesn’t arrive within 56 days, customers can make their complaint to the IPW under its Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) scheme. The IPW will investigate the matter and reach a decision which is binding on the IPW member firm.

Consumers can pursue other avenues of redress, such as legal action at any point.

Although IPW members provide, in total, tens of thousands of transactions every year, complaints are few and far between with the IPW typically investigating four complaints every year under its ADR scheme.

Complain about the Institute of Professional Willwriters

If a Member is not happy with the conduct of anyone at the IPW, they have the option to end their membership.

If you represent a business and would like to complain about the way that the Institute of Professional Willwriters operates, as part of the Approved Code Scheme, please contact us at : ccab@tsi.org.uk.

Organisation Information

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Code Sponsor Name	Institute of Professional Willwriters
Website	www.ipw.org.uk
Contact Number	0345 257 2570
Email or Online Form	Online Contact Form (opens in new tab)
Contact Address	Institute of Professional Willwriters, Trinity Point, New Road, Halesowen, West Midlands, B63 3HY

Corporate Details (from Companies House) :

Registered Name	WILLWRITING ACADEMY LIMITED
Company Reg. No.	06795501
Established	2009
Reg. Address	Trinity Point, New Road, Halesowen, West Midlands, B63 3HY

Return to the Approved Code Directory

PLEASE NOTE : We recently changed the consumer-facing name of the scheme from the Consumer Codes Approval Scheme (CCAS) to the Approved Code Scheme. However, some of our publicity and contractual materials (produced before June 2024) may still include references to the original name. Until we have adapted everything, both names remain valid - and we apologise for any confusion.