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Wills · Mirror wills for couples

Wills for two — written together, naming who raises your children

Mirror wills and guardianship — answered

Mirror wills let you and your partner set out the same wishes — for each other, and for your children — in one guided process, answered together. Including the question most couples put off longest: who would raise them if neither of you could. £229 for both wills, registration and a year of Will Watch included. England & Wales.

Two wills, one sittingRegistered with the National Will RegisterWill Watch included for 12 months
In short

Mirror wills are two separate wills with matching terms — typically each partner leaving everything to the other, then to the children. Each will stands on its own; either of you can change yours later. It is not one shared document, and that difference matters more than it sounds.

§1What a mirror will actually is

Two documents, one shape — not one document, two signatures.

Two documents, one shape. Your will mirrors your partner's — same beneficiaries, same guardians, same shape — but each is legally independent. If one of you dies, the survivor's will keeps working; if one of you changes theirs later, the other's stands.

What it isn't: a joint will. A single document two people sign is a legal antique with real problems — modern consumer will services mean mirror wills, not joint wills. If you've seen the phrase, what you almost certainly want is mirror wills.

One honest caveat most services skip

Mirror wills rely on trust, not law. After the first death, the survivor can legally change their will. For most couples that's fine — it's the point of choosing each other. Where it isn't (children from previous relationships, complex family shapes), the answer is usually a trust structure — and if your answers suggest that, we say so and route you to a professional rather than selling you a document that doesn't fit.

§2The guardianship question

The question a court will ask, if you never do.

It is the single most consequential sentence most parents will ever put in a legal document.

If both of you died and no will names a guardian, a court decides who raises your children. Under the Children Act 1989 (s.5), relatives can apply, wishes can be argued about, and the person you'd never have chosen can be the one with the strongest paper case.

The decision arrives at the worst possible moment, without the clear written appointment you could have left. Naming a guardian in your wills gives your choice legal form — recorded in the place the court and your family will look first.

For many couples it's the actual reason the wills finally get written. The guided process asks it plainly , explains what the choice means, and lets you name a reserve.

§3What's included

What £229 includes.

Included-item grid, four parts — the same price whichever way you look at it.

Both wills

Guided together, with clear execution guidance so the signing and witnessing is done right.

Registration for both

With the National Will Register — so the wills can be found when they're needed.

Will Watch, 12 months included

The annual prompt that checks your wills still match your lives (marriage, moves, births, the lot). A renewal price of £8.99/yr each has been agreed for year two onward — no auto-charge, nothing to cancel.

The honest check

Your answers are screened for the situations a simple mirror will doesn't fit (trusts needed, foreign property, blended-family shapes, business assets). Answered together, checked together — if your situation needs a professional, we say so before you pay, and route it.

§4The process

How it works.

Sit down once, together.

One guided sitting, plain-English questions, both sets of answers in one pass.

We prepare both wills.

Matching terms, independent documents, with execution guidance for each.

Sign, witness, done.

Registration for both included; Will Watch starts its 12 months.

FAQ

Mirror wills, questions answered.

Mirror wills are two independent documents with matching terms — the modern standard. A joint will is one document signed by two people, with serious inflexibility problems. Modern consumer will services usually mean mirror wills, not joint wills.
Yes. Most couples name one guardian (plus a reserve) for all children, but the process supports naming differently where families genuinely need it.
Then it's better discovered at the kitchen table than after a funeral. Because the sitting is answered together, differences surface early — and mirror wills only make sense where the core wishes genuinely match. Where they don't, two individual wills (£149 each) are the honest product.
A single will is £149; mirror wills are £229 for both — with registration and Will Watch's first year included for both.
Yes — and it matters more for unmarried couples. Without wills, an unmarried partner inherits nothing under the intestacy rules, however long you've been together. Mirror wills are the simplest fix.
The answers are screened together, and if anything in either of your situations needs professional drafting, both wills route to that professional togetheranswered together, checked together. You'll know before you pay.

The question you've been putting off is one guided sitting away from answered.

Make your wills together — £229

£229 for both · registration included · Will Watch 12 months included

Related next steps

Informational, not legal advice. Covers England & Wales only.

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