Where there’s a will…

The start of a new year is traditionally a time to make positive changes, which provides an ideal opportunity for millions of people to take a key step in putting their personal finances in order.

According to October 2011 research by professional advice website unbiased.co.uk, more than 29.5 million British adults have yet to make a will.

The figure includes 48 per cent of married adults, despite the fact that under intestacy rules there is a £250,000 limit on what a spouse or civil partner can inherit from their partner’s estate – which could be less than the value of the family home – if there is no will in place and there are children or grandchildren.

More than half (54 per cent) of adults cohabiting with partner intend to leave a property to a loved one, but until they make a will, their partner will receive nothing under intestacy law, which sets out who inherits what where there is no will.

According to the research, 25 per cent of those without a will say they will make one when they are older, 17 per cent do not think they have anything of value to leave behind and 11 per cent that it has never occurred to them. Another five per cent say they are put off making a will by the complicated process.

Guillaumes partner Neil Sapsed, a wills specialist, said: “Although making a will can seem a complex process, unless your financial and property affairs are particularly complicated, it can be very straightforward, as the will of the late broadcaster Robert Robinson demonstrated.

“According to probate records, Mr Robinson, who died last August at the age of 83, left an estate of more £5.6 million but it was reported that his will, leaving everything to his wife Josee, was just 169 words long and covered half a page.

"For the majority of people, making a will is a simple process that will cost much less than they think and represents a wise investment in reducing the time and expense involved in dealing with an estate when there is no will.”

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