Wills are an important part of family financial planning, but recent Standard Life research has revealed that six in ten British adults do not have a Will. No one likes thinking about death, but there are strong reasons to act now to plan your affairs.

A Will records your wishes regarding your assets when you die. In it, you can state which of your family, friends and favourite charities you would like to benefit after your death, and how much each of them receives. You can also nominate the most suitable people to deal with your affairs.

If you do not have a Will, you are said to die ‘intestate’ and the Intestacy Rules determine what happens to your property and possessions. These Rules are designed to be ‘one size fits all’, but the chances are that they won’t reflect your wishes or circumstances.

For example:

• Your assets may end up going to family members who do not need them.
• If you are in a relationship but are not married or in a Civil Partnership, your partner will not automatically inherit anything (there are no such thing as ‘common law’ marital rights) - he or she may have to go to court to make a claim against your estate.
• Conversely, if you are married but separated (not divorced), your estranged spouse will receive some or all of your estate.
• The Intestacy Rules make no allowance for gifts to friends or charities, or into trust.
• If your whole estate passes to your surviving spouse, they may in turn give everything to their side of the family, or to people you would never have intended to receive anything. Your other relatives could be left with nothing. 
• Your estate may bear more Inheritance Tax than necessary.

Making a Will also allows for broader estate planning. For example, Wills can be used to create a protective trust structure for family assets after the death of a spouse or partner. If the survivor remarries, becomes bankrupt or goes into a care home, the deceased’s assets can be safely preserved for the benefit of both the survivor and the wider family. Without a Will dealing with this, those assets could be vulnerable to claims by the new spouse, creditors, or Local Authority respectively. Many people put off making a Will, but why let the law dictate what happens to your property and possessions when you die?

For a no obligation discussion, contact Allison Crossman on 01483 273515 or email allison.crossman@twmsolicitors.com