As of 13 August 2026, AI can only partly check the witness requirements for your UK will.

What to actually do

1. Hand it to a person

   The route this page recommends

   A person who owns the outcome does this end to end, worth it when the failure is dear.

2. Use a tool built for this

   Second choice

3. Do it yourself

   The distant third

   A chat interface, chat-fluent skill, and roughly 30 minutes until you can act on the result.

   How to actually do it

   1. Open the current GOV.UK guidance on making a will and identify whether the will falls under England and Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland rules.
   2. Gather the will, any signing notes, and the names and relationships of the witnesses, without pasting unnecessary personal information into the chatbot.
   3. Write down what happened at signing in order, including who was physically present, who signed first, and whether each witness signed while the required people were present.
   4. Paste the prepared facts into the prompt and answer the chatbot's follow-up questions without guessing at facts you do not know.
   5. Compare every stated basic requirement and source link with the current official guidance for the correct UK jurisdiction.
   6. Take the will and the AI checklist to a wills and probate solicitor if a witness may benefit, the signing was unusual, a signature or presence is disputed, or anyone questions capacity or pressure.

   Prompt

   I need general information about whether the witnesses to a will appear to have met the execution requirements. This is not professional advice. Do not decide that the will is legally valid, and do not invent missing facts. First ask me which UK jurisdiction applies: England and Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland. Then ask only for the facts needed to assess the witnessing, including whether the will was written and signed, whether the person making it signed or acknowledged their signature in the presence of the required witnesses, whether the witnesses were present together if relevant, whether each witness signed in the required way and at the required time, and whether any witness or their spouse or civil partner may benefit from the will. Ask about any unusual circumstances, such as remote witnessing, a physical or communication difficulty, suspected pressure, lack of understanding, or a later alteration. Once I answer, produce: 1. a table of each relevant requirement, the fact supplied, and whether the fact appears to meet it; 2. missing facts and uncertainties; 3. the current official GOV.UK or other official source links supporting each basic rule; and 4. a clear list of situations in which I should ask a wills and probate solicitor before relying on the will. Keep England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland rules separate. If the facts are insufficient or unusual, say so plainly rather than giving a yes or no conclusion.

   Open it prefilled in ChatGPT or Claude, or copy it into Gemini, which takes no prefill link.