This is a guest article written by Tony Cockayne, Head of the Disputed Wills & Trusts team at Michelmores   http://www.michelmores.com/

No Will?

It is astounding that more than two-thirds of all adults do not have a Will in place. Those without a Will are leaving both themselves and their family in a vulnerable position.  Death happens to us all and morbid as it is to admit it could happen at any time.

Among the most common reasons for people not having a Will is the mistaken belief that their property will pass automatically to those they care about most after death.

That is not, however, the case. If you do not make a Will then the law will rule who administers your Estate and perhaps more importantly who receives all of your money, property and possessions. This is known as the “Rules of Intestacy”. Intestacy will divide an Estate in a pre-determined way and may not reflect an individual’s wishes. In particular the Rules of intestacy do not take account of the type of relationship relatives had prior to death.

There are also many other complicated situations where an individual’s wishes may not be reflected. Take for example a couple who have separated, although not formally divorced. If one of them were to die the position would be the same as if the couple were still together, not likely to be what they would have wanted.

Many celebrities have suffered the pitfalls of procrastinating with their Estate planning, these include:

Amy Winehouse. Amy died without a Will. She, therefore, had no control over how her Estate was administered. Amy had an older brother and also had an on/ off relationship with her ex-husband. However, as her Estate passed by the Rules of Intestacy it was left to her parents.  Amy’s dad Mitch administered the Estate and reportedly left her ex-husband nothing.

Rik Mayall. Rik failed to leave a valid Will to deal with his £1.2 million Estate. Not only did this mean his Estate was administered according to the Rules of Intestacy but also risked his family being left with a large inheritance tax bill.

Not having a valid Will can cause a massive financial headache and stress for families left behind. It also means families have to deal with the possibility of an inheritance tax liability and the Estate passing under the Rules of Intestacy which may go against what the Deceased would have wanted. To ensure problems like these do not arise and when you die you have a say in what happens to your Estate make sure you leave a Will.

Tony Cockayne, Mitchelmores