Studies show that approximately 60% of all British people do have and legal Will in place. That is quite a shocking statistic!
Some of the top excuses
There are numerous reasons why someone might not have a Will in place, I can list multiple excuses that have been presented to me over the years but the top 6 are:
- I didn’t think I had anything to leave.
- Wills are for the rich.
- A Will makes no difference because everything will go to my partner.
- I can’t afford it.
- I’m too young for a Will.
- A Will makes it more expensive and slows things down when I am gone.
Making a Will is not something many people want to do or even think about. It’s a bit like clearing out the garage or going on a diet, you know you need to do it but something always gets in the way and eventually, Will writing gets filed away and forgotten about.
Does that sound like you?
If so, read on…….
I’m here to tell you that while diets and garage clearance are important, they are nowhere near as important as writing your Will.
Here are some of my top reasons why:
COUPLES
When you die without a valid Will in place, you die intestate and the intestacy rules can be complex. In short, what it means is the Government rules come into play and they decide who should benefit from your estate.
- You may have lived with your partner for years but unless you are married to them or in a civil partnership there is no automatic right to inherit from you. Your partner would be left out of the Will, with your estate going to the closest surviving relatives. These could be people you haven’t seen or been in touch with for years or even people you fell out with and whom you would never wish to leave anything to. The law doesn’t take any of that into account and the rules of intestacy come into play.
- You could die leaving a straightforward estate as far as dividing your assets is concerned, but without proper planning, it could cost your beneficiaries thousands in inheritance tax.
CHILDREN
- If you have re-married a Will is a clear way to make sure any children from previous relationships receive the inheritance that is due to them. Unless your wishes are clearly stated in a valid Will you could find that your new spouse denies any knowledge of promises made (I have seen this happen).
- A valid or updated Will is particularly important if your first children are under the age of 18 and you plan to leave provisions for them.
- When you die and leave children under the age of 18 you could be leaving them alone. If there is no appointed guardian it would be down to the courts to decide where and with whom they should live. Some children end up in care while decisions are made, leaving them not only bereaved but also living with strangers, which can be traumatic at best. Writing a Will means you can stipulate who should care for your children if they are left orphaned and ensure that adequate provision is left for them. You can also leave provision for the people who you have appointed as guardians.
- Once a child turns 18 years of age they can legally claim an inheritance left to them but many are not mature enough to deal with large sums of money and end up losing it all. By making a Will, you can defer an inheritance until the child is older. 25 years old is a popular choice, by which time they are more likely to make a mature decision about how to use the inheritance.
- There have been some high-profile cases where the estate has been passed on to parents. One such case is that of Heath Ledger who had not updated his Will after he fathered a child. Because of this, half his estate was passed to his sisters and the rest to his parents. Nothing was left to his child Matilda, who was two at the time of his death. After the probate process had been completed the family donated all of the money that had been gifted to them in Ledger’s Will to Matilda but that is not a common outcome.
TRUST PLANNING
- Trust Planning within a Will means you can protect your assets from being used to pay for long-term care should you die before your spouse/partner. If the partner also ends up needing care at a later stage, your house cannot then be sold to pay for care.
BUSINESS
- If you have a business and you die without a Will your business could be sold, leaving your family with nothing.
- If you have a business that you have worked hard to build or even if it’s a new one, leaving clear instructions as to whom you wish to take over when you die is vitally important if you want it to continue.
These are just a few of the reasons why writing a Will is so important.
Not having a Will can cost you more than making one!
Everyone’s circumstances are, of course, different and at Bees and Co. we ensure that each Will we write is tailored to the client’s exact needs.
Our years of experience guarantee you the very best advice and service.
Click here for more information about our wills and probate services
If you are one of those people who has been procrastinating about writing your Will get in touch for a free no-obligation consultation.
John Bees
