Will Writing and Estate Planning in Lincoln

Everlasting Will

ESTATE PLANNING and WILL WRITING CONSULTANCY

WHY DO I NEED A WILL

You need a Will if you are married.
You need a Will if you have children under 18.
You need a Will if you and your partner are not married.
You need a Will if you in Civil Partnership.
You need a Will if you have children from a previous relationship.
You need a Will if you have adult dependants.
You need a Will if you have a disabled family member.
You need a Will if you have assets in your name only.
You need a Will if you have a business.
You need a Will to protect your estate from long term care fees.
You need a Will to provide for your family's or partner's future...
You need a Will to leave something to a relative, friend or charity...

Two thirds of people in the UK don’t have a will. Most of us mean to, but think we're too young or too healthy to worry about it yet, or it seems too morbid to think about.

Most people never get a round to making a valid will. This isn't ideal in any situation, but if you live with your partner and aren't married/civil partnered it can be a disaster. Your partner could find themselves out on their ear, homeless, with no money or savings, no right to organise your funeral or sort out your affairs, no keepsakes to remember you by even. Their only hope would be that, under certain circumstances, they might be able to take the matter to court - this would be expensive, stressful, drawn-out, damaging to family relationships, and there's no guarantee of success. If you think you don't need a will, you are almost certainly wrong.

At the very least making a will protects your partner, family and friends from a lot of stress and confusion over what you intended them to have, or to take care of, and who you wanted to be involved in your funeral, as well as protecting those you care for from financial or other hardship.

At present long term partners have to apply through the courts for financial assistant from a late partners estate should that partner die intestate. This is very costly and can have serious implications especially where there are minor children involved. Surviving partners should be able to inherit in order to continue to support families.

Check the petition the Prime Minister to allow co-habitees rights to inherit when long partner dies intestate.

More details

Deadline to sign up by:

27 February 2008

it is what happens if you die without a will. This could mean that your money and possessions would be distributed in a way that you would not have wished.

If you were Not married

Couples who are not married cannot inherit from each other unless there is a Will. And unless your partner has specifically named you in a Will, you will not automatically be nominated as his or her personal representative (the person who sorts out what you leave behind).

If you were Married

If there are children but no will, the surviving spouse inherits the first £125,000, all personal possessions, and a life interest in half the remainder and the children get the rest. If there are no children and no will, the survivor gets the first £200,000, the personal possessions and a share in any excess.
But a will takes precedence over these rules.

If you have children

Married or not, if you have children your Will should express what you would want to happen if you, or you and your partner, should die.

It is vital to make a Will and review it regularly to ensure that it reflects your current wishes and circumstances.

A will is invalid if:

you subsequently get married or remarried, unless the Will itself states that it is made in contemplation of that marriage.

a Will is not made under the correct procedures, for example errors made by witnesses, in signatures and dates.

Inheritance tax issues IHT

If you were Not married

On the death of your unmarried partner, the heirs, including the surviving partner, would have to bear IHT of 40 per cent on all assets left above the IHT personal threshold (currently £300,000). This could cause real hardship in some cases - if, for instance, the deceased partner's share of the family home is worth more than £300,000. In some circumstances, survivors are forced to sell off their shared home in order to pay the IHT. In areas where property prices have risen, the survivor may not be able to afford to buy another home nearby.

If you were Married
On the death of their partner, the surviving spouse will suffer no inheritance tax on the assets he or she inherits.