Questions

1	What is a Will?
2	What happens if I don't make a Will?
3	Can a letter be legal as a Will?
4	What can I do in a Will?
5	Can I change my Will?
6	Can I cancel my Will?
7	Does marriage or divorce affect my Will?
8	Can a Will be changed after my death?
9	What happens if I leave someone out of my Will?
10	What are Executors?
11	What are Trustees?
12	How many Executors can I appoint?
13	Whom should I appoint as Executors?
14	Do Executors get paid?
15	What do Executors do?
16	Should I appoint Guardians?
17	What happens to property in joint names?
18	What about Inheritance Tax?
19	What is a gift made "free of tax"?
20	After I have signed my Will can I leave with it a list of gifts or personal belongings?
21	What does it mean if I give someone a "life interest" in my Estate?
22	What should I do with my Will?
23	What is a "Living Will"?

1. What is a Will?

A Will is a list of instructions telling your Executors what to do with your property when you die.

2. What happens if I don't make a Will?

Your property will be divided according to certain legal rules (the "intestacy rules"). Some of them may surprise you. For example, the share your husband or wife gets may not be enough to give him or her outright ownership of your home. Also, if you are not married but have been living with someone, the person you are living with will not get anything. The following will give you a rough idea of how the rules work:

If you are single (i.e. unmarried, widowed or divorced) with no children or grandchildren your property goes:

to your parents or whichever one is living; if both your parents are dead, to your brothers and sisters, and if any of your brothers or sisters are dead, the share of that brother or sister goes to any of their children who survive you; if both your parents are dead and you have no surviving brothers, sisters, nieces or nephews, then to any half brothers or sisters (and if any of them are dead, their share goes to any of their children who survive you); if none of the above survive you, then your grandparents and then to any aunts or uncles and after that to various more distant relatives; if you have no relatives, or only very distant ones, your property then goes to the Crown (i.e. the Government).

If you are single with children or grandchildren your property goes:

to your children in equal shares; but if any of them have died their share will be divided between any of their children.

If you are married with no children or grandchildren:

the first £125,000 of your property goes to your husband or wife plus one half of the remainder; the other half goes to your parents or whichever one is living; if both parents are dead, the other half will go to your brothers or sisters or, as above, to the children of any who have died before you; if none of the above survives you, then your husband or wife gets everything.

If you are married with children or grandchildren:

the first £75,000 of your property goes to your husband or wife plus a life interest in one half of the remainder (this will eventually pass to your children or grandchildren on his or her death); the other half goes directly to your children or, as above, to the children of any who have died before you.

When these rules are applied it usually does not matter whether a person is legitimate, illegitimate or adopted. Thus, for example, your adopted children have the same rights as your natural children, and the same is true for any of your children whose mother is not your wife or whose father is not your husband.

3. Can a letter be legal as a Will?

Yes, a letter could be a legal will. However, it would need to be witnessed and could well be contested if the wording is ambiguous. It is always better to have your will professionally written.

4. What can I do in a Will?

You can say exactly what you want to happen to your property. You can make "thank you" gifts of money. You can make gifts of personal belongings that are special to you and the person to whom they are given. You can make gifts to charity which are free of Inheritance Tax. You can appoint Guardians to look after your young children. You can choose who you want to be your Executors and Trustees. Fundamentally, your Will is a record of your instructions on how you want your estate to be distributed and also gives you the opportunity to express your wishes about your funeral.

5. Can I change my Will?

Yes, but only by signing a document called a Codicil. This must also be prepared, signed and executed in a particular way. You do not need a Codicil if you or any person named in your Will changes their address. A Codicil is useful for minor changes to your Will. If you wish to make major changes it is often preferable to write a new Will.

6. Can I cancel my Will?

You can cancel your Will by making a new Will, or simply by tearing it up and burning it.

7. Does marriage or divorce affect my Will?

A Will is almost always cancelled automatically if you get married after you have made it. If you get divorced after you have made it, any provisions in favour of your wife or husband will be cancelled unless the Will says otherwise. It is essential that you consider writing a new Will if there are major changes to your circumstances.

8. Can a Will be changed after my death?

Normally, no. However, there may be instance where the court could make a judgement. See the next topic for more details.

9. What happens if I leave someone out of my Will?

If you have not properly provided for any of your dependants who are unable to maintain themselves, or if you have not been fair to your wife or husband (or even an ex-wife or ex-husband who has not remarried), the Court can alter your Will. Your reasons for not having provided for someone should be given in your Will or in a separate letter which can be referred to in your Will. The Court will consider these reasons but it will not be bound by them.

10. What are Executors?

Executors are the people appointed in your Will to carry out your instructions.

11. What are Trustees?

Trustees are the people appointed in your Will to look after your property until for example, a child is old enough to inherit or where there is a life interest. Executors and Trustees are usually the same people.

12. How many Executors can I appoint?

You can appoint up to four Executors, but you should appoint at least two. You can appoint "reserve" Executors in case your first choice decides not to take the position or dies before you.

13. Whom should I appoint as Executors?

Any adult person or a bank may be appointed as an Executor. One of them could be the person who is going to receive the biggest share of your estate, such as your husband or your partner. Relatives and close family friends can be Executors. There is also a government department known as the Public Trustee. It's easy to appoint another Executor later if you want to do so by means of a Codicil. If you appoint a professional Trustee do remember that they will charge for their service.

14. Do Executors get paid?

Only if the Will says so. Most Wills, including those prepared by Bequest Wills, provide that professional people or banks should be paid their normal fees. They would not act otherwise. A solicitor would normally charge around 2% to 3% of the value of the Estate. A bank's fees would be considerably higher at 4% to 6% of the value of the Estate. Check with your bank before committing yourself as not all banks provide the service.

15. What do Executors do?

Executors bring together all your assets, pay your debts and any gifts of money, transfer any gifts or personal belongings and deal with the remainder - your Residuary Estate - in accordance with your Will. Often non-professional Executors will ask a solicitor to do some or all of the work for them.

16. Should I appoint Guardians?

If you have children under the age of 18 who may be left with no parents you should appoint a Guardian or Guardians if you know of anyone suitable.

17. What happens to property in joint names?

People who are "co-owners" of property hold it either as "joint tenants" or as "tenants in common".

Husbands and wives are usually, but not always, joint tenants. This means that when one of them dies the other one automatically becomes the owner of the whole of the property. It also means that a joint tenant cannot make a gift in a Will of his or her share of the property.

Business partners are usually, but not always, tenants in common. This means that when one of them dies his or her interest in the property forms part of his or her Estate. It also means that a tenant in common can make a gift in a Will of his or her share of the property.

A joint tenancy can easily be converted into a tenancy in common by one of the co-owners giving a written notice to the other saying that the joint tenancy has been "severed" and that they are now tenants in common. Bequest Wills can draw up this notice for you. Such a notice should be placed with the deeds of the property.

If you don't know whether you are joint tenants or tenants in common, you should consult the solicitor who acted for you on your purchase of the property.

These principles also apply to other jointly owned assets such as bank and building society accounts and other investments.

18. What about Inheritance Tax?

If the value of your Estate is more than £231,000 (from 6 April 1999) after payment of your debts and any gifts to your husband or wife or to charity. Inheritance Tax may be payable at 40% on the value over this amount. Bequest Wills can advise you on ways of reducing or removing the impact of Inheritance Tax.

19. What is a gift made "free of tax"?

A gift is free of tax when any Inheritance Tax, if it is payable, is to be paid out of your Residuary Estate and not to be taken out of the gift or otherwise paid by the recipient. In Wills drawn up by Bequest Wills all gifts, except of the Residue, are free of tax. All gifts to charities are, in any case, exempt from Inheritance Tax.

20. After I have signed my Will can I leave with it a list of gifts of personal belongings?

You can do this if you have said so in your Will but do not attach the list to your Will. It is better to include each individual gift as part of the Will.

21. What does it mean if I give someone a "life interest" in my Estate?

If your responsibilities are "divided", e.g. you wish to ensure that your partner is adequately provided for but feel you have a duty towards, say, children of an earlier marriage, then you may wish to consider giving your partner a "life interest" in your Estate. This restricts the partner's inheritance to the income only of your monetary assets and the use of your home. On the death of your partner the capital will pass to whoever you have specified in your Will, such as your children.

You should, however, bear in mind that unless the Estate is fairly large, the income may be insufficient to support your partner. The duties of the Executors and Trustees will also be more onerous.

When considering a gift of a life interest, it is very important to remember that the recipient does not own the property in your Residuary Estate and cannot dispose of it in his or her Will. It is also important to remember that the prime duty of the Trustees is to keep a fair balance between income for the person getting a life interest and capital growth for those who will be ultimately entitled to your Residuary Estate.

22. What should I do with my Will?

You should leave it in a safe place. Your Executors will need the original. Bequest Wills can arrange for your Will to be stored at The Principle Registry of the family division for a modest fee.

23. What is a "Living Will"?

A "living will" (also called an advance directive) is a set of instructions issued in advance to the medical practitioners who may be involved in looking after you in the future. People making a Living Will state that they do not wish their lives to be artificially prolonged when suffering from a terminal illness or other degenerative conditions. Bequest Wills can draw up these instructions for you if required.