Will you still be around next week? Most of us work on the basis that we will be – which is entirely reasonable. However, it is worth noting that over 1,500 people a day die in the UK and that an awful lot of them leave chaos behind them.
57% of Brits admit to not having written a will. This means that all too often grieving relatives are faced with the financial and administrative headaches that come with someone dying intestate – without a will.
So while the odds are that you will still be with your family this time next week, it is worth making sure you have a will written – just in case.
Why you need a will
If you die without a will there is a legal framework designed to distribute your estate. However, it might not work quite as you think.
If you die married, but without children, your spouse will receive all your ‘personal chattels’ – car, furniture, thimble collection etc. The rest of your estate (including your house if it’s in your name only) will be split, with your spouse getting a legacy of £450,000 (or whatever there is up to £450,000) and half of whatever’s remaining. The other half goes to your parents, or, if they are dead, is split between your siblings. So if your house is worth more than £450,000 and is solely in your name, your spouse may have to sell it to release value to other claimants.
If you are married with children, then your spouse still gets your personal belongings, plus a legacy of £250,000. They also get lifelong interest on half of the remaining money, which goes into a trust for your children to receive on their 18th birthday. If that is what you wanted, that’s fine. If it isn’t, and you haven’t a will, best make one.
However, there are people who are much more vulnerable than spouses when it comes to intestate law – unmarried long-term partners. If you die leaving a partner behind, the Treasury will treat your estate as though you were single. So your partner will get absolutely nothing. Instead, your estate will go to your children, or if you don’t have kids, to your parents; or (in order of priority) your siblings, half-siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles. And if you don’t have any family at all, the government will retain the entire estate, regardless of how many years you have lived with your partner, or what your wishes might have been. For full details of the rules on intestacy, see Directgov.
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If you have children, then it is vital that you make a will so that you can appoint a guardian to look after them if both their parents die. If you die without doing this, your next of kin will be appointed as their carers. Again, that might be what you want, but it can cause problems if your next of kin are, say, elderly parents. Note too that if you are an unmarried mother with children and die with out leaving a will, the children’s birth father will not automatically get custody. So make sure you have a will stating who you want to look after your children in the event of your death.
Once you have done this, don’t forget about it. If your circumstances change (you get divorced or remarried or you have your first child perhaps) you need to update your will. Otherwise your beneficiaries will face the problem of dealing with an out-of-date will.
How to make a will
There are three main ways you can make a will: through a solicitor, through a will writer or with a do-it-yourself kit. The last is the cheapest option, with kits costing from £4.99. If your estate is small and straightforward, this option is worth considering. But be careful: there are increasing reports of people making mistakes when writing their own will. And one little mistake can make your will worthless. “The one thing worse than not making a will at all is making a mess of writing a will,” says Which? in its Wills and Probate Guide. Homemade wills are also easily ripped apart in court should anyone decide to contest them.
The second option is to use a will-writing company. These are usually cheaper than a solicitor, but there are growing concerns that what you may save in money now your beneficiaries will be paying out later.
A BBC Panorama investigation last month revealed that many will writers – and banks that offer the same service – appoint themselves as the executor of your will. They then go on to charge big executor and probate charges, which often don’t come to light until the person has died. There are reports of some organisations charging up to 4.5% of estates on the death of a client.
The Scottish Parliament is introducing proper regulations for will-writing firms – so that they are regulated to the same level as solicitors offering the service. But the same cannot be said in England and Wales. “Solicitors are having to clear up the mess left by some will writers. Until there is greater regulation and protection for consumers on wills, the best option is to use a solicitor,” warns Desmond Hudson of the Law Society, in The Daily Telegraph.
Getting a solicitor to write up your will is by far the safest option. Typically it costs between £100-£400 (more if you live in London). If both you and your partner need to get wills, you can get mirror wills. These are exactly the same wills just with a reversal of names and cost around £200 for both.
The cheapest way to get a professional will
You can get a will drawn up by a solicitor at a cut price if you take part in ‘Make a Will Month’ this November. This is a charitable campaign run by Will Aid. Solicitors donate their time for free to support the charities. Then instead of paying them a fee for writing your will, you make a donation to Will Aid. The suggested minimum donations are £40 for a codicil (an amendment to an existing will), £75 for a single will, or £110 for mirror wills.
• This article is taken from our weekly MoneyWeek Saver email and was first published on 7 September 2010.
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