Here’s why you should write a will online. Recent research shows that over half of the UK population die without making a valid will. Around 5.4 million people don’t know how to make one.
Most people believe that if they die without making a will, any assets they own will automatically go to their spouse and children. Unfortunately, this is not always the case!
Here’s why you need to write an online will –
If you die without making a will, your estate will be handled according to the laws of the intestacy. The laws of intestacy set out a hierarchy of distribution of an estate where a person dies without a will. Only married or civil partners and some other close relatives can inherit under the rules of intestacy, anyone else is not automatically entitled to inherit anything from the deceased’s estate.
Here’s our simple explanation of some of the hierarchy of intestacy rules –
A surviving spouse, but no children. Where there is a surviving spouse but no children, the spouse inherits everything.
A surviving spouse with children. Where there are a surviving spouse and children, the intestacy rules will share the estate as follows. The spouse of the deceased will receive everything up to the value of £250,000. Anything in addition to the £250,000 is divided in two. Half will go to the spouse; then any children will receive the other half when they reach the age of 18.
Children but no partner. If there are children but no married or civil partner, the children will inherit everything, and all proceeds will be equally split between them. ‘Children’ includes adopted children but not stepchildren.
No partner and no children. The estate will fall to the deceased’s parents. If the parents of the deceased have died, the assets will be distributed in the following order:
1. Brothers and sisters (or nephews and nieces if the sibling has died)
2. Grandparents
3. Uncles and aunties (or cousins if the uncle or aunt has died
If this isn’t possible, the estate goes to the Crown.
What happens to joint assets under intestacy?
If the home is jointly owned, the deceased’s share will automatically pass to the surviving partner.
Suppose the home is owned as ‘tenants in common’. In that case, the survivor isn’t automatically entitled to inherit the share of the property. Therefore the deceased’s share will pass under the laws of intestacy.
Couples may own joint bank accounts or building society accounts. The ‘survivorship rule’ applies in this instance also where the surviving partner will automatically inherit all the money in the account.
It’s important to point out, the rules of intestacy may not distribute the estate in the most tax-efficient way.
Write an online will! It’s one of the most important things you can do because it allows you to decide how your assets will be distributed and to whom on your death.
