How and why you should make a will today...

When someone dies and there is no Will they are said to ‘die intestate’ the following situations can occur:-

Married Couple with/without Children

(or a same sex couple who have entered into a civil partnership agreement) If one partner died any survivor is only entitled to a maximum of £250,000 if they have children or £450,000 if not. The balance is maintained in a restrictive trust where the survivor can only access a poor rate of interest upon 50% of the balance and is subject to some complicated rules.

Minor Children

The law determines who will raise your minor children in the event of your deaths; As a result your children could well become Wards of Court and be placed into state care, particularly whilst the courts are deciding over a period of weeks/months who is most suitable to raise them.

An Ex-Spouse/Partner

An ex-spouse or partner could have a claim to some or all of deceased person’s estate. If a claim is made the claimant’s costs can be borne by the deceased person’s estate. The distribution of the estate is delayed until the claim is settled. A current partner may have to sell the family home to settle any claim awarded by the courts.

Spouse/Partner have Stepchildren

If you have stepchildren it is possible that you:

i. Would like to treat them exactly the same as any natural children you may have (but unfortunately the Law does not).
ii. Would like them to benefit from your estate in the event of your death. The Law gives priority to natural children over stepchildren. Also other family members such as parents, aunts and uncles have precedence. Therefore stepchildren cannot inherit without a Will.

Couple who Cohabit

(mixed or same sex couple) The Law says an unmarried partner is entitled to nothing. Although you may share everything, in the event of one of your deaths the deceased’s family such as parents, brothers, sisters etc would be the beneficiaries. A co-habiting partner may have to move out of their home as it could now be owned by the deceased’s family.

Inheritance Tax

Any person dying or the last to die of a married couple or a same sex couple who has entered into a civil partnership agreement who leaves a total estate of over £325,000 could have an Inheritance Tax liability which is taxed at 40% of the excess. (In some cases the estate value for the last to die of a married couple or same sex couple could be £650.00 before there is an inheritance tax liability). It should be borne in mind that the Tax Demand has to be usually settled BEFORE the Grant of Probate (the authority for the assets to be distributed) can be obtained. To settle the tax, the family may have to raise the money from their own resources to pay the bill. All assets are included. If you add all your assets together, most people are worth far more than they thought e.g. house, contents car, life insurance, pension, death in service payments from employment, savings, personal possessions etc.