A DIY will kit can work for a genuinely simple estate — no blended family, trusts, business, or complex assets — but common failures include incorrect signing, ambiguous wording, and informal amendments that invalidate it. The biggest trap: your will usually doesn't control your superannuation, which is directed by a separate death benefit nomination. A failed will kit can cost far more than a solicitor would have charged upfront.
A will kit from the post office or newsagent costs about the price of a takeaway dinner, and a cheap online will service isn't much more. A solicitor's will costs a few hundred dollars. Put like that, it's easy to see why so many people reach for the DIY option — especially if they think their affairs are simple. But there's a catch that isn't obvious at the counter: the cost of getting a will wrong isn't paid by the person who saved the money. It's paid by their grieving family, in legal fees and conflict, after that person is gone and can no longer fix it. Here's an honest look at when a DIY will is fine, how they go wrong, and the one trap almost everyone falls into. This article is general information only, not personal or legal advice.
When might a DIY will be perfectly fine?
Let's be fair: a homemade will can do the job — but only in narrow circumstances. If your estate is genuinely simple — you're leaving everything to one person, or splitting it in a straightforward way, with no blended family, no trusts, no business, and no complex or unusually valuable assets — a well-made DIY will can be valid and effective (ASIC MoneySmart, https://moneysmart.gov.au/plan-for-your-retirement/wills-and-powers-of-attorney). The important word is genuinely, because "simple" turns out to be a much lower bar than most people assume, and even a simple will has to be executed correctly to count. So DIY isn't automatically wrong — it's just right far less often than the people buying the kits believe.
How do DIY wills go wrong?
The problems cluster into a few predictable areas. The first is execution — the signing and witnessing. A will generally has to be signed by you and witnessed in a specific way, typically by two adult witnesses who are not beneficiaries — but the exact rules vary by state and territory, so this is one to confirm for your own state or check with a solicitor (ASIC MoneySmart, https://moneysmart.gov.au/plan-for-your-retirement/wills-and-powers-of-attorney). Get it wrong — a beneficiary witnesses it, or a signature is missing — and the will can be invalid, or need an expensive court application before it's accepted. The second is ambiguity: DIY wills are notorious for unclear or contradictory wording that ends up being fought over and interpreted by a court. Closely related are informal amendments — crossing something out, adding a handwritten note, attaching a sticky note — which can invalidate the will or parts of it. If you want to change a will, you make a new one (or a proper codicil), not annotations.
Then there are the gaps. Many DIY wills fail to deal with the residue — everything left over after the specific gifts — so part of the estate falls into a partial intestacy and is distributed by a government formula. Many make no provision for contingencies: what happens if a beneficiary dies before you, if the executor can't act, or if a beneficiary is a minor who needs a trust. And DIY wills rarely handle a blended family well, or take the steps that reduce the risk of a family-provision claim — exactly the situations where careful drafting matters most.
What is the trap almost everyone falls into?
Here's the one to remember above all: your will usually does not control your superannuation. People write "I leave everything to my children" in a DIY will, assuming that sweeps up their super — often their largest asset. It doesn't. Your super does not automatically form part of your estate; it's directed by the death benefit nomination you've lodged with your fund, a completely separate document, and if there's no valid binding nomination the fund's trustee decides who receives it (ASIC MoneySmart, https://moneysmart.gov.au/how-super-works/who-gets-your-super-if-you-die). A binding nomination also generally lapses every three years unless renewed (ASIC MoneySmart, https://moneysmart.gov.au/glossary/binding-death-benefit-nomination). Joint assets are similar: property held as joint tenants passes to the co-owner by survivorship, outside the will entirely. A DIY will-maker who doesn't know this can leave a plan that misses most of their wealth. Our articles on nominations and on relationship changes explain how it works.
Is it a false economy?
This is why a cheap will is so often the most expensive kind. A will kit that fails can cost the estate a great deal — legal fees to validate, interpret or litigate it can run into the thousands or tens of thousands of dollars, vastly more than the few hundred dollars a solicitor would have charged to get it right the first time (illustrative — actual costs depend on the dispute). And every cent of that cost, and all of that conflict, lands on the people you were trying to provide for, at the worst possible time. Set against that, a professionally drafted will is not an expense; it's cheap insurance.
What is the middle ground?
If a solicitor genuinely isn't an option, there are steps up from a bare kit. Some online will services are reviewed by a lawyer and are a good deal better than a blank template — though others are little more than a form, so check exactly what you're paying for. Public trustees in each state also offer will-making services, sometimes free or low-cost; just be aware that they may charge as the executor later if you appoint them, which is a trade-off worth understanding upfront. And if cost is the barrier, community legal centres and legal aid can point you to affordable help (Australian Government, https://www.ag.gov.au/legal-system/legal-assistance-services).
What do the worked examples show?
These show the two ends of the decision — the genuinely simple estate and the one that needs a solicitor. They are illustrative only, not personal or legal advice.
Consider Margaret, 74, a widow leaving her home and modest savings equally to her two adult children, with no blended family, no business and no trusts. On these facts a carefully completed DIY will could be valid and do what she wants — provided it is signed and witnessed exactly as her state requires, deals with the residue, and names a backup executor (ASIC MoneySmart, https://moneysmart.gov.au/plan-for-your-retirement/wills-and-powers-of-attorney). On these facts it is generally rational for someone in Margaret's position to still handle her super separately with a death benefit nomination, since it won't pass under the will, and to have even a simple will glanced over rather than assume the kit got the execution right.
Now consider Robert and Susan, both 68, a blended-family couple each with children from a previous marriage, who own a rental property and hold their super in a self-managed fund. On these facts a DIY will is a false economy: blended families are exactly where wording, contingencies and the risk of a family-provision claim need careful drafting, and their super and jointly held assets sit outside the will and must be coordinated with it (ASIC MoneySmart, https://moneysmart.gov.au/how-super-works/who-gets-your-super-if-you-die). On these facts it is generally rational for a couple in Robert and Susan's position to use a solicitor and align their nominations and ownership with the will, because the cost of getting this wrong would fall on their children after they're gone.
What should you do?
So weigh it honestly. If your estate is truly simple and you're confident about correct execution, a careful DIY will can serve — but for anything beyond the simplest situation (a blended family, any trust or business, significant or complex assets, or a real risk of someone contesting), see a solicitor. Whatever route you take, get the witnessing right for your state, deal with your super through a death benefit nomination rather than the will, never amend a will informally, and review it after any life change such as a marriage, divorce or new grandchild — our article on relationship changes explains why that matters. And once it's done, store it somewhere safe and findable, and tell your executor where it is. A will is the one document you can't fix once it's needed. That's exactly why it's worth getting right.
Sources
- ASIC MoneySmart — Wills and powers of attorney
- ASIC MoneySmart — Who gets your super if you die
- ASIC MoneySmart — Binding death benefit nomination
- Australian Government — Legal assistance services
Key takeaways
- A DIY will kit can be valid for a genuinely simple estate — one beneficiary group, no blended family, no trusts or business, no complex assets — but "simple" is a narrower bar than most people assume.
- Common DIY will failures include incorrect signing and witnessing, ambiguous or contradictory wording, informal amendments (crossing out or handwritten notes), and gaps that leave part of the estate undistributed.
- The biggest trap: your will usually does not control your superannuation — super is directed by a separate death benefit nomination lodged with your fund, which generally lapses every three years unless renewed.
- Joint assets, like property held as joint tenants, pass to the co-owner by survivorship outside the will entirely, so a DIY will-maker who doesn't know this can leave a plan that misses most of their wealth.
- A failed will kit can cost far more in legal fees to validate, interpret or litigate than a solicitor would have charged to draft it correctly the first time — a cheap will is often the most expensive kind.
Frequently asked questions
Is a DIY will kit legally valid in Australia?
It can be, but only for genuinely simple estates — no blended family, trusts, business, or complex or unusually valuable assets — and only if it's executed correctly, including proper signing and witnessing according to your state or territory's rules. Even a simple will has to meet these formal requirements to be valid.
What are the most common ways DIY wills go wrong?
Incorrect signing or witnessing (which can invalidate the will), ambiguous or contradictory wording that ends up fought over in court, informal amendments like crossing something out or adding a handwritten note, and gaps such as failing to deal with the residue of the estate or contingencies like a beneficiary dying first.
Does my will control what happens to my superannuation?
Usually not. Super doesn't automatically form part of your estate — it's directed by the death benefit nomination lodged with your super fund, a completely separate document from your will. If there's no valid binding nomination, the fund's trustee decides who receives it, regardless of what your will says.
Is a DIY will actually cheaper than using a solicitor?
Often not, in the long run. If a DIY will fails, the legal fees to validate, interpret, or litigate it can run into the thousands of dollars — far more than a solicitor would have charged to draft it correctly the first time. The cost of a failed DIY will falls on your grieving family, not on you.