AI wills: Growing problem
Both artificial intelligence (AI) and online influencers are becoming a source of “inadequate, outdated or misleading advice on wills and financial planning”, according to research.
More than a third of private client lawyers have come across online influencers “making false claims and spreading misinformation about estate planning”, while 15% had encountered mistakes in wills drafted by AI.
A further 7% had seen AI-drafted wills which were completely invalid, said researchers from the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP).
Greta Pender, managing director of the Collas Crill Trust in Guernsey, commented in the report that online ‘finfluencers’ were “a core trend of concern”, particularly on next-generation beneficiaries.
“While increased engagement with financial topics can be positive, trustees are increasingly alert to the risks posed by oversimplified, unregulated or context-free advice being consumed via social media platforms.
“This can create misaligned expectations, encourage inappropriate risk-taking, or undermine carefully considered long term structures.”
STEP said there was “growing concern” about clients using AI to generate wills, “and the high likelihood of errors, such as vague wording, omission of crucial clauses, failure to meet legal requirements and lack of personalisation”.
The report predicted that the problem was “likely to grow significantly as the use of AI becomes increasingly ubiquitous”.
A “recurring theme” of the study was “the rise of the seemingly well-informed client, who has in fact been misinformed by AI chatbots”.
The STEP Barometer 2026: Global trends in family wealth and succession planning was based on responses from over 500 STEP members based across the world, but mostly the UK (36%) and Canada (16%).
Almost half (47%) said they had come across wills with errors drafted by unqualified or incompetent will writers in the past year.
Over a fifth (22%) had experienced cases of will writers or estate planners appointing themselves or a nominee company as executors and/or trustees without telling the client.
A similar proportion made unnecessary charges or were in an “inappropriate relationship” with a company they recommended.
Seven out of 10 practitioners identified blended families as the leading cause of legal or planning challenges in their jurisdiction, followed by multi-jurisdictional or cross-border families (63%).
Four out of 10 have seen an increase in disputes within blended or ‘modern’ families in the past 12 months.
Many of the most common “points of friction” in blended families were conflicts between children or stepchildren and their parents or stepparents.
This was followed by “unequal treatment of siblings” (37%), conflicts between children and stepchildren (27%) and complete disinheritance of a child (21%).
Adult children were cited by two-thirds of private client lawyers as the most frequent perpetrators of financial abuse of older and vulnerable people, with a third saying both “unscrupulous professionals” and caregivers, including private carers and care homes.
They were followed by cohabiting partners, by spouses or civil partners and other “predatory individuals”.
Three-quarters of private client lawyers said they felt confident in recognising the signs of financial abuse.