Making a Will

11/07/2018

We use insurance without giving it a second thought, protecting the metal and rubber that are our cars, the bricks and mortar that are our homes and the flesh and blood that are our lives.

We protect the ‘things’ we value, which is why it is all the more mysterious why so many of us fail to put in place a mechanism to pass that wealth to our families.

A staggering 60% of Britons fail to put a will in place, something that is an absolute necessity to ensure the value of your estate is passed to your family. With no will, children and loved ones remain exposed to uncertainty, emotional upheaval and the possibility of not inheriting what they thought they would.

If you die without a will, your estate will be shared out according to the rules of intestacy. This creates a huge amount of stress and uncertainty for families, for example:

  • Your partner will only inherit under the rules of intestacy if you are married or in a civil partnership. Cohabiting partners will inherit nothing, regardless of how long they have been together.
  • If you have informally separated from your partner, they will still inherit under the rules.
  • If there are surviving children and the estate is valued at more than £250,000, the partner will inherit all of the personal property and belongings, the first £250,000 of the estate and half of the remaining estate, while the children share the remainder equally.

The rules are complex and lengthy, leading to confusion and delays at an emotional and difficult time for families, and all because the simple extra step of making a will has not been taken.

It is no more morbid to write a will than to insure your car in case you have an accident. It is of course illegal to drive uninsured but perfectly legal to leave your children and family without the protection of a will and the assurance of receiving what they need. A strange disparity of values if ever there was one!

A will can be made for a one-off fixed fee starting at just £190+vat, which is less than many people pay for their buildings and contents insurance each year.

Food for thought and perhaps the prompt to implement the most important insurance you can for your family.

If you would like advice about making a will or updating an existing will, call us on 01782 205000.