Around 180,000 people a year die without making a will, which equates to around 56% of all UK deaths. Many people leave a will until it is too late and dying without a will can cause significant problems for the people you leave behind.
Why should you make a will?
Even if you are young and healthy, tomorrow is never guaranteed, and life can change in an instant. If you were to die tomorrow, would your family be provided for? Here are 10 reasons why you should make a will:
1. You get the control. You ultimately get to choose who will benefit from your estate and what they are entitled to. You also decide who will administer your affairs after your death.
2. If you don’t make a will, there are rules as to who benefits, which may not necessarily be true to your wishes. The law also sets a hierarchy of who can handle your financial affairs after death, and that can lead to problems if the person is not suited or may have bias towards a certain party.
3. Making a will via a solicitor ensures that legal disputes will be reduced. Disputes can arise if there is no clear legal route and can cause a lot of unnecessary stress and money.
4. Whilst a legally made will can still be challenged, the court are often more sympathetic towards the request of the deceased and so will genuinely favour the requests made in the will.
5. It is often quicker, cheaper, and less stressful to administer an estate where there is a will. There may be the requirement to search for lost relatives without a will, which can add expense and time.
6. A will also enables you to preserve assets for beneficiaries. For example, if you have property and/or business interests, you may want those to go to certain people, whilst leaving further assets to others. Intestacy rules may require some assets to be sold in order to create shares for each beneficiary, which causes issues if one of the assets is a property where somebody lives.
7. A will can be used to ensure you make provision for those that need it, whilst protecting assets for other beneficiaries. Without a will, children from future relationships could benefit from the inheritance, which may be against the wishes of the deceased.
8. A properly drafted trust in your will could enable someone to manage the inheritance should you wish it to go to a disabled or vulnerable person and may ensure the intended beneficiary does not lose his/her means tested benefits.
9. If you die without a will and a share of your estate is left to a vulnerable or disabled beneficiary, the person handling your estate may need to insist on someone to be their court-appointed deputy before settling the share, a process that is both expensive and time consuming.
10. You can nominate someone to act as a guardian for your children (if you die while your children are minors) and you can also record your funeral wishes in your will. This is something that is rarely (if ever) discussed during life, so can help those left behind.
If you would like a no-obligation chat about making a will, please do not hesitate to contact Clowes & Co Solicitors, who will help you to create a will to protect you and your family.
