| Please
accept our apologies if
the above statement offends you but there is no hiding from the fact we
all have to die! Indeed,
the only thing sure in
life, is that you will die. And there
is no set pattern,
sometimes no warning, and certainly no way whatsoever of avoiding it!
What
happens if I don't make a Will?
Making a
Will is relatively straightforward and not very expensive. However, in
spite of this, seven out of ten people in the UK die without a Will.
This often causes delays, hardship and worry - and even costly legal
bills can result if there is confusion and disagreement among those
left behind.
Should you die without a Will or if your Will is deemed to be invalid
(e.g. if it wasn't completed or signed correctly) then you are said to
have died intestate.
This results in the law deciding who gets what of your
estate.. However,
there is one set of rules for Scotland and another set of rules for
England and Wales and another set of rules for Northern Ireland.
You
owe it to your loved ones to ensure you leave them with no hardship!
Please
find below an article taken from Ezine Articles
What is a
Will? It is a legal document or a signed
letter
left by the deceased giving instructions on what should happen after
his/her death and how the estate should be divided. We all know we
should have one, but often do not understand why. What
happens without a Will? Making a Will is
the only way to
ensure that
your wishes are carried out after your death. If you have not made a
valid Will, your property will pass on according to the law of
intestacy. This may not be what you would have wished. It is also
likely to take longer to finalise your estate than if you had made a
Will. During this time your beneficiaries may not be able to draw any
money from your estate. It can mean arguments and distress for
relatives. Matters to consider
If you are single,
you will want your estate divided amongst friends, relatives and
charities of your choosing and in the proportions you want. If
you are married,
don't assume "my
other half will get everything". Brothers and sisters or parents may
have a claim. Often you children have a right to part of your estate.
If you are living as a couple but not officially married, you may be
treated as a single person and a surviving partner may get nothing at
all. One thing you can be certain of - there will be argument and
dispute at a time when the family should be coping with the loss of a
loved one. If you are a parent,
you should
consider who would look after your children in the event of your death.
This is particularly important in the case of one parent families or
unmarried parents living together. A valid Will nominating guardians is
invaluable in such cases. If no one knows what you would have wanted,
the Court will decide on the future of your children, and it may not be
what you or your children would have wished. If you
are retired,
maybe you made a
Will a long time ago. It probably needs updating to include additional
grandchildren or deletion of persons you no longer feel you wish to
leave anything to. Whatever your circumstances,
making a
Will is a good way to ensure that your wishes are carried out. What are
you waiting for?
| Another Article.......
Please note: this article applies to residents of England,
Wales and
Northern Ireland and is provided for general information only. It does
not constitute financial advice.
It’s not something that anyone likes to think about, but
deciding
what happens to your estate when you die is crucially important for
ensuring that your loved ones are looked after when you’re
gone
and that your assets are distributed as you would have wished.
Many people think that wills are only necessary for people with a great
deal of wealth, but this isn’t the case. There are certain
laws
governing how a person’s estate is divided if they die
‘intestate’ (i.e. without a will), which might not
be what
you would expect or intend. For example, if you’re not
married or
in a civil partnership, even if you co-habit with your partner, they
will not be entitled to inherit anything from you unless you
specifically mention them in your will. Even if you are married,
without children, your spouse will not inherit your entire estate
– other living relatives such as your parents and siblings
will
be entitled to a share. Also, if your circumstances change, for example
if you get married, divorced or remarried or have children, this could
make your estate more complicated to settle. Another important point to
bear in mind is that if you don’t have a will, you
won’t
have a named executor to carry out the administration of your estate
and the responsibility will fall upon your beneficiaries, whom you may
deem unsuitable to handle your affairs.
Making a will has other advantages too – planning your estate
and
who will inherit may help you to minimize the impact of the inheritance
tax laws.
To make a will, you must be 18 years of age or older. You must be
considered to be of sound mind and it should be written without
pressure from any other party. A will must be recorded in writing, and
it needs to be signed by yourself in the presence of two witnesses, who
must also sign. Beneficiaries of the will and married partners of
beneficiaries cannot act as witnesses. If they do, the will
won’t
be invalidated, but their inheritance will be. The completed and signed
will can be kept anywhere you want – at home, at your bank,
at
your solicitor’s office, at a Probate Sub-registry, a
District
Registry or the Family Division Registry of the High Court.
The big question for many people is whether it’s necessary to
employ a solicitor to set up a will. The answer is no, but it is
certainly recommended, particularly if your estate and personal
circumstances are rather complex. It’s also easy to make
seemingly simple mistakes which could end up having significant
consequences. Common errors are not understanding what has to be done
to make a will legally valid, changing the will without having it
signed by witnesses, failing to make alterations in the event of a
change in personal circumstances, forgetting about parts of your
estate, or not taking into account that the beneficiary might die
before inheriting.
Solicitor charges for setting up a will can vary between solicitors and
will also depend on how complex your estate is. If you’re a
member of a trade union, your membership may entitle you to a free
will-writing service or free legal advice. You can bring down costs by
considering in advance what your assets are and to whom you would like
to leave them – whether family, friends or charity. This will
include property, possessions, bank accounts, insurance policies,
pensions and shares. Also think about who you want to appoint as
executor of your estate and who you want to look after your children
should you die before they reach the age of 18.
You should certainly consider using a solicitor if you have complicated
personal circumstances, for example if you live with someone who
isn’t your spouse or civil partner, if you have a dependant
who
is unable to look after themselves, if you have a business or own
property abroad, if you don’t live in the UK or
aren’t a UK
citizen, or if you have lots of family members who may make claims on
your estate, such as ex-spouses or children from previous marriages.
If you don’t want to use a solicitor, it’s possible
to
purchase ‘DIY’ will kits from many high street
stationers
and bookshops or online providers, which will provide basic guidance.
Remember to make amendments your will any time you have a change in
circumstances such as marriage, remarriage, divorce, civil partnership
or the birth or adoption of children. You’ll need to be
careful
in how you amend your will to ensure that it remains valid.
It’s
not possible to write alterations onto an existing will. Instead you
must either write what’s known as a
‘codicil’ or draw
up a new will entirely. A codicil is like an addendum to your will. It
doesn’t replace the original will, but makes alterations to
one
or more of the sections. Only the person who created the original will
can make a codicil, and it must be signed and witnessed in the same way
as the original will (although not necessarily by the same witnesses).
It’s only suitable for making small and uncomplicated changes
such as increasing or decreasing the amount of money left to a
beneficiary, adding a new beneficiary or changing the executor. You can
add as many codicils as you want to your will, but if you have lots of
amendments or complex changes it’s best to start afresh with
a
new will altogether. When you draw up your new will, you should insert
a clause at the beginning to explain that this new will revokes all
previous wills and codicils. Your old will is no longer valid after you
do this (and have your new will signed and witnessed), and you should
therefore destroy it. You must destroy it yourself too, or have it
destroyed in your presence – otherwise it may still be
considered
valid.
Your will may be challenged if a person feels that it hasn’t
left
them with adequate provision or they don’t believe it to be
valid
– for example, if it hasn’t been drawn up in line
with the
legal requirements outlined above.
Author: Benedict Rohan
Website: www.mortgagenation.co.uk
Benedict Rohan works as a freelance finance writer.
Commercial
Mortgage, Homeowner Loans, Remortgages
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Benedict_Rohan
| So,
armed with all this knowledge can we really have any excuse for not
making a will? Here
are some excuses we use........ Top 5 Excuses For NOT Making a
Will
Everybody knows it is important to make a Will, but most people put off
making one of their own for a variety of reasons.
So now, with a little tongue in cheek,
we give you the Top 5 Excuses For NOT Making a Will:
Excuse 1: “I’ve just been much too busy to think
about it”
Excuse 2: “I can’t decide what I want to put in
it”
Excuse 3: “My husband just doesn’t want to talk
about it”
Excuse 4: “We can’t agree on guardians”
Excuse 5: “We’re thinking about moving”
Ten Minute Will offer
a convenient online service and with prices from only£29.99 it couldn't be easier or cheaper to make a will. Contact Ten Minute Will Here..... Don't
let your loved ones suffer, Do
Make A Will Now. 
-
Recommended books on what is known as 'The Last Taboo'
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