John Adams, aged 58, was forced to leave his home following his wife's death because of an ambiguous clause in her DIY will.

The couple had lived in their St Helens home for nearly 20 years, but it was registered in Mrs Adams' sole name.

In her homemade will, she gave her husband a life interest in the house, stating that it should pass to her children from a previous relationship when John died.

However, because of the wording used in the will, her children believed John was not entitled to live in the house and evicted him while he was at a family funeral, in Scotland. They changed the locks, and John was forced to sleep rough that night.
 
He brought a claim for financial assistance from the estate, saying he had been left destitute due to the actions of his wife's children. The case settled before trial, and John received half the sale proceeds from the house. The estate also agreed to pay his legal costs.
 
Ambiguous wills can cause considerable cost, delay and distress for families at what is already a difficult time following the death of a loved one.

Access Legal from Shoosmiths has noticed an increase in the number of claims arising from homemade wills.

Karen Shakespeare, a will specialist, believes families are more likely to fall out following a death when there is uncertainty about what their deceased relative wanted. 
 
Many people who make their own wills accidentally create trusts, which can tie up assets for many years or have undesirable tax consequences. The opposite of this is people who do actually want trusts, but unintentionally end up with a trust that fails because of the words they use. 
 
Access Legal from Shoosmiths recently acted for the executors of a homemade will which caused disagreement between 19 beneficiaries following the death of their father/grandfather.

As the only person who truly knew what he intended wasn't here to tell us, the family asked a judge to decide. It took four years and cost a great deal of money. 
If a solicitor prepares a will, a note of the deceased's wishes are available in case of an argument following death, demonstrating that professional advice from a solicitor when making a will can save a lot of heartache later.

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