Why have a will?
If you do not have a will:
1:
Your possessions will be shared out in the standard way by the Intestacy Rules, rather than how you would like.
2:
If there is no one with parental responsibility for your children under 18, the Court will decide who should be their guardian; it may not be who you would chose and no one else has the right to make that decision instead (including your children’s next of kin).
3:
Administration of an estate (i.e. distributing your assets to the right people) without a Will can take years and be expensive.
4:
Husbands and wives are not automatically entitled to inherit everything from each other.
5:
If you are not married or in a civil partnership, your partner will not inherit from you unless you have a Will, however long you have lived together.
6:
If you are going through a divorce process but the divorce hasn’t been finalised, your spouse will still benefit under the Intestacy Rules as if they are still your spouse.
7:
You may wish to leave something to friends or charities; this will only happen if you make a Will.
8:
A carefully prepared Will can minimise the amount of IHT paid.