Solicitors at Latimer Hinks complete a 'drive thru will signing'

Member Article

Darlington solicitor introduces ‘drive thru wills signings’ to help social distancing clients

Latimer Hinks Solicitors in Darlington has introduced a ‘drive thru will signing’ facility to meet the recent increase in demand for services.

The firm has observed that, since the beginning of the coronavirus crisis, significantly more clients have been focusing on estate planning, including requesting wills and Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) arrangements.

The team at Latimer Hinks were concerned that it would be impossible to execute the will documentation correctly while adhering to social distancing rules, as the client and two witnesses must be present at the same time.

To address this, clients have been invited to pull up outside the office, where the documentation is presented to them in their cars and returned to the solicitor at a safe distance and taking all the social distancing precautions.

Jennifer Quayle, a solicitor at Latimer Hinks and the first to carry out the ‘drive thru will signing,’ said: “Like everyone in the country, we must follow the regulations on social distancing, but we quickly realised that it was going to be difficult to meet the legal formalities of executing a will if we couldn’t get everyone in the same room.

“We have the space in front of the building and, taking advantage of the low levels of traffic, we decided to be creative, and take the office outside. Our clients have responded very well to it, even if it is a little bit strange at first.”

Natalie Palmer, a director at Latimer Hinks, said: “Latimer Hinks has been serving the local community for more than 125 years, and over that time we’ve had to adapt and change to make sure our clients still receive an excellent service.

“Offering a ‘drive thru will signing’ service is just one of the ways we have supported our customers since the coronavirus crisis began, and we are delighted that we are able to keep helping our clients during this difficult and unprecedented time.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by News Gathering .

Explore these topics

Our Partners