WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU DIE
WITHOUT A MAKING A WILL?
Simply put, the government will decide what
happens to your property, possessions and
money for you. Dying without a Will, known
as dying intestate, means that the rules of
intestacy must be followed to distribute your
estate, and it may be the case that those you
wanted to inherit could be left with nothing.
To work out who will benefit from your
estate if you die intestate, we’ve produced a
handy flowchart for you to follow.
If you died intestate and are married, or have
registered a civil partnership, your partner
will receive everything only if there are no
children. If there are children, your partner
will receive part of your estate, and the
children will receive whatever is left over.
If you are unmarried or haven’t registered
a civil partnership, then your partner will
receive nothing, and so we must follow the
flowchart to determine who is next in line to
inherit from your estate. If it is any children
you have, everything is distributed amongst
them equally. Followed by parents, siblings,
half-siblings, grandparents, then finally aunts
and uncles. If you have no living relatives
at all, then your estate is passed onto the
crown.
It is most likely that this is not how you wish
for your estate to be distributed. You may
not want certain people to receive anything
after your death, or you may wish to leave
everything to a specific family member, or
even to your friends or favourite charities.
Writing a Will is the only way to ensure this can
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The Society of Will Writers
happen. Without a Will, you have no control
over your estate after death and neither will
anyone else, as the rules of intestacy must
be followed. If you’re married and don’t have
a particularly complex estate, then having
a Will may not be a necessity. However, as
soon as you introduce children, property,
or any foreign or business assets, then you
would be ill advised to leave everything up
to the rules of intestacy.
There are many benefits to having a Will
other than control over how your estate is
distributed. If you have quite a large estate,
you may need to consider your Inheritance
Tax (IHT) liability. A Will can be a useful tool
to help mitigate the size of your IHT bill,
and you can do this by leaving charitable
gifts, or gifting in lifetime. Your Will Writer
or solicitor will be able to best advise you
on this matter. You should also consider
appointing guardians for you minor children
in your Will. In the event that you’re no
longer around to care for them, would you
want to let the courts decide who looks after
your children, or somebody you know and
trust? Appointing guardians for them ensures
that they’re placed in the care of somebody
of your choosing, which any parent would
surely prefer.
To make a Will, you can find a member in your
local area with our ‘find a member’ page:
www.willwriters.com/members
Alternatively, you can call us on:
01522 68 78 88.