You may retrieve your Will (s) from us at any time. You may also retrieve your Title Deeds.
No charge will be made for the release of the above documents on demand, nor for their storage in the meantime, nor for their confidential shredding in due course.
If you wish us to arrange for the documents to be sent to you, we shall ask you to cover the reasonable expenses involved. The carriage of documents by any third party such as postal or courier services will be at your risk.
You may contact us by any of the following means:
- In person/by post: 70, Walton Road, East Molesey. Monday to Friday, 9.15 am to 5pm. We are not open on public holidays or on certain dates around the Christmas and New Year period (check www.kww.co.uk)
- By telephone: 020 8979 1131 · By email: reception@kww.co.uk
How to make a formal request for return of documents
As email requests are not permissible, you have two options available to formally request these documents to be returned:
- Download, complete and return our simple Form of Authority, paying attention to the requirements for verification of identity
- Send us a letter
If you are sending us a letter, you must include the following information:
- Your full name, postal address, contact telephone number and email address
- Details on whether the Will was initially made and stored with KWW or one of our legacy firms, and if so, which one (see list at the bottom of this section)
- Original or certified copy of proof of your address, such as a utility bill, council tax bill or bank statement. This should confirm your name and address and be dated within the past three months
- Certified copy of your photo ID e.g. passport or driving license. For more information on certifying copy documents, see our Verification of Identity page.
Collection or delivery protocol of documentation
Allow us a few days to process your request and then contact our Administration team on 0208 979 1131 or email: reception@kww.co.uk.
Please do not call in to the office unannounced as the documentation may not be available on-site.
We can post your Will out to you via Royal Mail, and this will be sent within 15 working days.
You will need to sign a receipt to confirm you have taken away an original if collected, or acknowledge a safe receipt if we post original documents out to you.
If you are an Executor of a Will
Executors can request an original Will from us. You will need to provide:
- The Registrar’s copy of the Death Certificate
- Authority requesting release of the original Will signed by all Executors named in the Will (we have an ‘Authority to release Will and Property Title Deeds’ form you can fill out and return to us).
- Evidence of identity for all Executors such as a Passport or Driving Licence together with a Bank Statement or Utility Bill no more than three months old.
You need to complete a Verification of Identity form, which should be signed by all Executors and returned to us, as detailed.
Please be informed or reminded that the role of Executor carries a great deal of responsibility, as well as personal liability in relation to reporting matters to the relevant authorities, including HM Revenue and Customs and any creditors to whom the deceased owed money.
If an Executor has died, we will need sight of their death certificate. If you do not have the death certificate, you can apply to the General Register Office for a copy or from the appropriate local Register Office (i.e. the one where the death was actually registered). This applies only if the person died in the UK.
You will then need to make an appointment to collect the documentation (see collection/delivery protocol above).
Legacy firms
Whether you have written your Will with one of our KWW lawyers or with one of our legacy firms your Will is stored securely with us. The legacy firms are:
- Maynard James Rosen
- Bosworths
- Roebucks
- Heston
- Sheridan
