intestate

Dying without a Will is never a good idea, yet around 70% of UK adults never prepare their Will. If you die without a Will, the courts make key appointments on your behalf, and a legal formula distributes your assets depending on the size of your estate and your family situation. If you die without a Will you pass all control of your assets over to the courts and expose your loved ones to family squabbles.

The Ten Best Reasons to Write a Will now

We know that most people have not written their Will. These people fall into two camps; the group who think it’s important, but haven’t got around to it yet, but hopefully they will write a Will at some time in the future. The second group are those who have the “why do I care? I’ll be dead anyway” approach. Although they’ve hopefully spent their life thinking of other people, they feel content simply letting their family and loved ones sort everything out once they are gone.

Unfortunately, they don’t understand that taking just 20 minutes now, can save their family from distress, acrimony, family feuds, and potentially expensive legal battles.

Surely I’m overstating the impact of not having a Will? Let me explain ten good reasons why you should write a Will today, based on our 15 years of experience in dealing with distraught family members whose loved one died without a Will in place.

Continue reading →

How to write a Will – 5 simple steps at LegalWills.co.uk

How to write a Will

How to write a Will at LegalWills.co.uk

Most people know that they need a Will, but according to recent statistics, as many as 30 million UK adults have not made a Will. According to this report; more than half of UK adults don’t have a Will, but only ten percent of those have not even considered it.

This report breaks down the numbers of people who do not have Will. Continue reading →

Intestate Succession

What happens if you die without a Last Will and Testament?

I don’t need a Will. It is obvious who will get my things anyway. Everything will go to my spouse.

We hear this a lot, and nothing could be further from the truth. The distribution of an estate without a Will (intestate law) is so complicated that the government websites have a question and answer wizard to step you through a number of different family situations. At the end of this they calculate the shares of the estate going to each person. So let us dispel a few myths.

Myth 1: If I die without a Last Will and Testament my spouse will receive everything.

Fact: This is actually true for the first £250k in value. But according to an article published this week in the Guardian, the average house price in England is £272k, with the average price in London now at £514k. The £250k threshold is no longer limited to the interests of the very wealthy. Everything above £250k is divided such that any children will take half, and the spouse will take a “life interest” in half, meaning that the children will receive that second half when the surviving parent dies. Continue reading →