Faqs/Glossary

Can I make my own Will?

Yes you can but there are significant risks in doing so. Unfortunately any errors made in a Will will not be discovered until the Will is needed (i.e. after your death), so you will have no chance to correct the mistakes. This could mean emotional upset and financial loss for your family. It is perfectly fine to write your own Will if you have the skills to do so, just as it would be fine to re-wire your own house if you are an electrician. Should you not, however, possess the relevant skills then either project is quite likely to lead to disaster.

What are Executors?

You must appoint a person as Administrator of your Estate after your death. It is that person’s job to ascertain your assets at the time of your death and then distribute them in accordance with your Will. It is important that your Executor lives in the UK so do not appoint someone who is normally resident abroad or is likely to move abroad in the foreseeable future.

Can an Executor be a Beneficiary?

Yes. It is quite often the case that the executor is one of the main beneficiaries.

What happens if I die without a Will?

Contrary to popular opinion, your Estate will not necessarily pass to your partner after your death. An unmarried partner will be entitled to nothing and even a spouse may not receive the entire Estate, or even sufficient to maintain their current lifestyle.

Do married couples need two Wills?

Yes. A pair if similar Wills are called a “Mirror Will”. Getting married or remarried cancels a previously written Will unless the Will expressly states otherwise.

Will I have to pay Inheritance Tax?

As of April 2009 the “Nil Rate Band” (the amount you can leave before you have to pay IHT) is £325,000. If you are a married couple (or in a civil partnership) you can also use your partner’s Nil Rate Band,. You could, therefore, leave a total of £650,000 without paying any IHT. Anything above this limit would be taxable at 40%. If you die without a Will a sizable amount of your Nil Rate Band could be lost and your Estate could be required to pay tax that could have been so easily avoided.

Does divorce affect my existing Will?

Getting divorced does not cancel a Will, but a gift to a divorced spouse lapses, unless a contrary intention appears in the Will.

Should I appoint Guardians for my children?

If you have children under the age of 18 you need to appoint guardians for them in case a tragedy should occur. Failure to do so could result in a Court appointing someone who you would not chose.

The Guardian does not have to physically look after a child, but he or she is responsible for ensuring that the child is properly cared for. If you wish to appoint Guardians here are some points to remember:

You should appoint someone who is unlikly to be elderly or infirm by the time that your youngest child attains his or her majority.

You should seek the guardians consent before you consider appointing him or her.
If you are separated or divorced and the other parent has parental responsibility, then the appointment for a Testamentary Guardian will not come into effect until the surviving parent dies.

Can children under 18 inherit my Estate?

Children cannot inherit until they reach 18; below this age the funds are held in Trust. The Trustees decide what income and/or capital can be used for the benefit of the child/children, e.g. to pay school fees. If you think that 18 is too young for your child/children to inherit a large sum of money, you can specify in your Will that they do not receive the capital sum until a later age. They will, however, be entitled to receive any income from the Trust Fund as soon as they reach 18.

What if my main beneficiarys dies before me?

Although it is not absolutely necessary we would say that it is wise to provide for alternative beneficiarys. This can be one or more named persons (in equal or unequal shares) or to charitys.

What should I take into account when I make gifts of money?

We recommend that any bequests of money should be kept to a small proportion/percentage of your Estate. This is due to the technical rules of English Law by which all such gifts are paid first out of the Estate, which may be unfair to the person who is to receive what is left. It is possible that by the time you die your Estate may be considerably less that it is now. If you leave someone a few thousand pounds, therefore, thinking it is only a small sum, it could be that by that time it might be more than your main Benificiary will receive.

What should I think about when I make gifts of items?

As with gifts of money we recommend that you keep the value of the gifts to a small proportion of your total Estate. Remember that the Beneficiary will have to pay the cost of transportation; which is an important consideration if the benificary lives abroad.

Please ensure that you give a detailed description of the item you are leaving. The description should be such that an independent person could identify the item without having to ask questions for further clarification. It would be a good idea if you took a photograph of the item in question and write on the reverse what it is and then place it with your Will.

What should I think about with the remainder of my Estate?

You need to decide who is to receive the balance of your Estate (called the “Residue”). This is usually your main Beneficiary, assuming that you have kept the gifts of money and items to a minimium. You can leave the residue to one person or a number of persons in equal or unequal shares. You can also leave the residue to be divided between a class of persons such as your “children” or your “nephews and nieces”. Remember that the word child or children includes adopted and illegitimate children.

Why should I update my Will?

There are many reasons to update you Will:-

• Marriage/divorce: all or part of your old Will will be invalid
• Trouble in marriage or partnership
• Grandchildren grow older and couples/person wants to benefit them in their own right even if the “Residue” from the Will still passes to their parents.
• Resolution to raise age at which children/grandchildren benefit from 18 because they are deemed unable to cope at 18.
• Choice of Guardians needs amending – parents now too old to cope with teenagers or school requirements make local Guardians necessary.
• Arrival of children makes appointment of Guardians necessary for the first time.
• Care costs becoming an increasing likelihood - need to protect the property from being sold by the Local Authority.
• Need to assure housing situation of an adult child who has not left home or has unexpectedly returned due to a relationship break-up.
• About to go on holiday, especially long haul and/or imminent surgery/illness.
• Child on drugs - leaving them a large amout of money might not be appropriate, so leaving funds in Trust might be adviseable.

Glossary

Administrator: someone who is appointed by law to settle your affairs if you die without a Will Beneficiary.

Beneficiary: a person or organisation who receives benefit from a Will or Trust.

Bequest: a gift of an object or cash.

Chattels: personal belongings like pictures, jewellery, cars and even pets.

Codocil: a change to an existing Will, though nowadays it is easier to make another Will.

Crown: with no Will and no next of kin, the Crown inherits your Estate.

Domicile: usually the country in which you live; however, if you or your parents were born outside England and Wales, or you intend to live permanently outside England and Wales, you should consider taking legal advice.

Estate: the assets that you own which can be left under your Will, less any outstanding commitments. There are items which may not be left under your Will (see Joint Property). Most pension provisions are not assets which can be left under the terms of a Will or intestacy.

Executor: a person or company named in a Will to administer your Esate and to be responsible for carrying out the terms of the Will and settling taxes and debts.

Funeral arrangements: directions you can give in your Will regarding your wishes such as details of your burial, funeral services, etc.

Grant of Probate: a document issued by the Court confirming both the validity of a Will and the Executor’s right to administer the Estate.

Inheritance Tax: a 40% tax payable on larger Estates. (A legacy to a charity is free of Inheritance Tax).

Intestacy: an Estate where there is no Will and the law directs who inherits.

Intestate: not having a valid Will or a person whom has not made a Will.

Issue: this means your children, their children and so on all the way down the family tree.

Joint Property: under English Law there are two methods of jointly owning property with another. Under a Beneficial Joint Tenancy the entire property passes to the survivor(s) on a death. Under a Tenancy in Common a person’s share of the property passes under the terms of his/her Will (or on his/her intestacy).

Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA): a type of Power of Attorney which remains effective even if the person who gives the power later loses their mental capacity.

Legacy: a gift that you wish to leave to a person or organisation upon death.

Letters of Administration: as for a Grant of Probate, but issued to an Administrator.

Minor: a person under 18 years of age.

Mirror Will: a Will that contains almost identical terms to your Will. Many husbands/wives/partners have Mirror Wills where they have decided upon the same beneficiaries, irrespective of which partner dies first.

Probate: the legal process and the document issued to Executors authorising them to administer the Estate. If no Executor has been appointed in a Will then an Administrator is appointed.

Testate: having a valid Will.

Testator (male)/Testatrix (female): the person making the Will.

Trust: a written arrangement whereby an appointed Trustee is given money or assets to hold and manage for the benefit of those defined in the Deed which created the Trust.

Trustee: a company, or individuals, appointed in the Trust Deed to hold the Trust assets and to be responsible for the management of a Trust.

Will: a written document, which when properly executed, controls how a person’s assets are to be dealt with after his/her death. If improperly executed the document may not constitute a Will.

Wills in expectation of marriage: if you and your partner intend getting married soon your Will(s) can be made ‘in expectation of your marriage’ which means it/they will be valid before and after the marriage takes place. Marriage would otherwise cancel a Will.

Witness: two witnesses must see you sign your Will and you must also watch both of them sign it. They must also watch each other sign the Will. No beneficiary (or their spouse) should sign the Will; if they do then any gift to them or their spouse will be invalid and will fail.