National Will Week: Solicitors warn "Beware the unregulated when making your Will"
Earlier this year, the first report from the Legal Ombudsman highlighted the fact that thousands of people have been “ripped off” by unregulated will writers. Here during National Will Week, Helen Honeyball, partner and Head of the Private Client Team at Stones Solicitors LLP, describes why it’s best to use a regulated expert if you want to be sure that the terms of your will are fulfilled as you wish.
Last year a survey conducted by professional advice website unbiased.co.uk found that 62 per cent of people admitted they did not have a will and latest figures show that 29.5 million adults in the UK are without a will.
Making a will is up there with many other sincerely meant but rarely followed through resolutions. It is something we all know we have to do but, as the survey results show, many of us do not.
A will is the only way to ensure that what you leave behind when you die goes to the people and organisations you want it to, and at a time that is appropriate (this is especially important for assets left to children, which you may wish to delay until they are older).
The findings of the Legal Ombudsman and the various studies on the subject are worrying but not surprising. Unregulated will writing services may appear to be cheaper than those provided by a regulated expert, but sadly and in many cases the problems created by an unregulated provider can result in additional costs and the plain fact that your wishes are not carried out as you would want on your death.
If someone dies without making a will they are intestate. This means that their assets are divided up in a strict order and if there are no family members within the statutory categories, the whole lot goes to the Crown.
The unbiased.co.uk survey showed that three-quarters of people who were married said they wished to leave everything to their spouse. This is fine if they have a will, but if they do not their spouse will only receive the first £250,000 automatically under current intestacy rules (assets owned jointly may pass by survivorship but ,particularly in the case of a property, this assumes that the appropriate form of co-ownership applies) . Forty per cent of people who were not married said they would like to leave something to their partners, but the surviving partner of an unmarried couple has no right to an inheritance if there is no will in place.
The other worrying statistic is that the percentage of people without a will who had children under 18 years of age was 70 per cent. This could leave many children vulnerable because, under current rules, children who are not named in a will are only entitled to an inheritance if there is no surviving spouse or if an estate is worth more than £250,000. There will also be no appointed guardian for them, which could and should have been the case if a will had been made.
Making a will is often seen as something for older people to do and the results of the survey back up this perception – 87 per cent of those under 35 did not have a will. But it is not age but circumstances that should trigger making a will: circumstances such as divorcing or separating; selling an asset, such as a property; buying a large asset, such as a second home; having children; getting married or civilly contracted; starting a business; having financial difficulties; and thinking about providing for care home fees.
We believe that making a will is the kindest and best thing you can do for those left behind. It takes away a great deal of stress and heartache for family and friends at what will be a very difficult time.
Making a will is simple and best carried out by a regulated expert. Think about what you have and where and when you want it to go after you have died; then visit a recognised solicitor so that they can draft your will to fully reflect your wishes – a process that pays dividends in time and really does not cost a great deal. They can take you through all the ramifications for you and your inheritors – from the formation of trusts to tax planning, provision for specific assets such as business assets and provision for issues such as care home fees.
Once you have made your will, revisit it on a regular basis to ensure it still reflects your wishes and the assets you wish to bequeath and those you wish to benefit, and that it is in line with changing legislation. And, importantly, make sure that members of your family know where to find it – according to another recent survey, 67 per cent of people in the UK do not know the location of their parents’ wills.
Around 500,000 people die in the UK every year and there are 300,000 intestacies – that’s a lot of people left behind to pick up the pieces when there is no will. If you want people and organisations to benefit from your assets after you have died in the way in which you wish, then the only way to achieve this is by writing a will and using the services of a regulated expert to do it.
Helen Honeyball and her colleagues can be contacted at Stones Solicitors LLP on 01392 666777 and 01837 650200. More information is available by logging on at www.stones-solicitors.co.uk.
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