A will is a legal instrument. A digital vault is an access mechanism. Confusing the two — assuming one replaces the other — is how families end up locked out of accounts that a will technically grants them the right to.
What a will actually does
A will establishes legal ownership and intent. It tells a court, a bank, or a probate officer who is entitled to what. What it cannot do is hand someone a working password, a private key, or two-factor authentication codes. Legal entitlement and technical access are two separate problems.
What a digital vault actually does
A vault like Reep solves the access problem: it stores the credentials, keys, and instructions in encrypted form and releases them under verified conditions. But a vault alone has no legal standing — it's a delivery mechanism, not a court-recognized declaration of intent.
Where RUFADAA fits in
The Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act exists precisely because digital assets fell into this gap — fiduciaries had legal authority under a will but no recognized way to actually obtain access from service providers. Designing around RUFADAA from day one, as Reep does, means the legal and technical layers are built to work together rather than past each other. See our compliance approach for the details.
The practical answer: use both
Keep your will current with an estate attorney for legal intent and asset distribution. Use a digital vault for the operational reality of credentials, keys, and timed releases. Reference one in the other — name your vault and its access process inside your will — so executors know exactly where to look.
The takeaway
A will without a vault leaves executors locked out. A vault without a will has no legal teeth. 2026 estate planning means treating them as one connected system, not competing options.