Where to keep your will so executors can actually find it

A solicitor in Surrey once described a case where probate was delayed by eight months because the deceased's original will was eventually found inside a hardback novel on a bedroom shelf. The family had no idea a will existed until a neighbour mentioned it. The estate was straightforward; the suffering was not.

Storing a will well is a separate discipline from writing one. The document has no legal effect if nobody can locate it in time, or if the original cannot be produced. What follows is a considered comparison of the five main options available in England and Wales.

The five main storage options

Your solicitor's strongroom. Most firms that draft wills offer to retain the original free of charge, or for a modest annual fee. The advantages are considerable: the document sits in a fireproof, professionally managed environment; the solicitor's records link the document to your name; and a well-run practice will notify executors directly if they make an enquiry. The risk is firm closure or merger, practices do fold, and the Law Society has a procedure for tracing documents held by defunct firms, but it adds time and friction. If you move solicitors, retrieve the original and confirm its new location in writing.

The National Will Register (Certainty). England and Wales has no single mandatory state registry, but the National Will Register, operated by Certainty, is the largest private register. Solicitors, will writers and individuals can register a will's existence and location for a one-off fee. Executors and probate practitioners can search it. Registration does not mean depositing the document, it means recording where the document is held. This is a useful layer of findability, not a substitute for physical storage elsewhere. The Principal Registry of the Family Division (part of HMCTS) also accepts wills for safe keeping under a statutory scheme, though this service is less widely used and worth confirming directly with HMCTS for current availability and fees.

A bank strongroom or safe-custody service. Several private banks and a diminishing number of high-street banks offer document storage. Access is controlled, fire protection is strong, and the institution's records provide a clear audit trail. The practical drawback is access after death: a bank may require sight of a grant of probate before releasing contents from a safe-custody box, yet probate requires the original will. Executors can find themselves in a circular position. Before choosing this route, confirm in writing exactly what the bank will release on production of a death certificate alone.

A home safe. A quality, floor-anchored or wall-mounted safe with a fire rating appropriate for paper documents offers genuine physical protection. The will remains immediately accessible to whoever holds the combination or key. The risks are equally immediate: fire or flood can destroy even a rated safe if temperatures exceed its specification; the combination may not be known to executors; and a home safe offers no independent record of the will's existence. If you use this route, register the will's location with the National Will Register and leave clear, written instructions with your executor about the safe's location and access.

A digital vault. A digital vault such as Glenvault does not store the legal original, the original wet-ink document must still sit somewhere physical, but it performs a different and complementary function. It holds a high-resolution scan of the signed will alongside the name of the firm or individual holding the original, the location of any home safe, the contact details of executors, and related documents such as the letter of wishes, property deeds, or lasting powers of attorney. Crucially, it can be structured so that designated people gain access under defined circumstances: incapacity, death, or a combination of both. That layer of orchestrated findability is what prevents the hardback-novel problem.

What executors need, and when

An executor's first task is locating the original will. They need to know three things: that a will exists, where the original is physically held, and whom to contact to retrieve it. None of this is automatic.

Practical steps worth taking now:

• Confirm your solicitor retains the original and has your current address and executor details on file.
• Register the will's location with the National Will Register.
• Leave a clear written note, stored separately from the will itself, telling your executors where to look and whom to call.
• Review storage arrangements every five years, or after any significant life change.

The original will almost always needs to be lodged with HMCTS as part of a probate application, so whoever holds it must be willing and able to release it to your executors promptly. Confirm this in advance rather than leaving it as an assumption.

The physical document and the information about it are two different things to protect. Most families secure one and neglect the other.

Glenvault is designed for families who want both covered, start organising your estate documents at glenvault.com/signup.