Wills & Probate

You can store it at home but you should consider the following points. A Will can be easily lost, as sometimes happens when people move house, for example. There is also the added question of security; do you want other members of your family to have access to your Will?

It is possible to lodge your Will with a solicitor, but the charge can be high and it might be inconvenient if you move away from the area where you currently live. Your bank is another possibility, but again there could be quite a hefty cost involved.

Why not consider storing your Will at the National Probate Records Centre using Lawpack's National Will Storage Service.

The Centre is the most secure storage facility in the UK. The cost is £12.00 per year and you also receive free forms when you want to make changes to your Will. Lawpack also maintains contact with your executor (with your consent), plus many other benefits.

To get further information and an application pack, visit the will storage page.

Yes. Both you and your spouse should make Wills, even if most of your property is in one person's name. This will allow you to name your spouse as the person who will benefit from your property if you die, and you can decide where your property should go if your spouse dies before you.

A Will is valid until revoked, which can happen in a number of ways:

• By destroying it, combined with your intention to cancel it. Physically destroying your Will usually revokes it. Accidental destruction of a Will does not cancel it but there might be difficulty in proving that it applies. A Will can be destroyed by another person, but it must be at the request of the testator.

A Will must be physically destroyed - simply crossing out the Will or writing 'revoked' across may not be sufficient. Rubbing out or cutting off the signature of the testator or witnesses may be enough to revoke the Will.

If part of a Will is destroyed, only that part of the Will is revoked. If an entire Will is to be revoked, any codicils attached to it may have to be revoked separately. If a Will is known to have been kept in your possession, but can’t be found when you die, it will be presumed that it was destroyed by you unless there is proof that that wasn’t what you intended.

• By making a new Will that revokes your old Will. To make sure of this, the Will forms in our books and kits contain the phrase, 'I revoke all previous Wills and codicils'. This gives you the opportunity to reconsider all of the terms of the old Will and make all the changes at one time rather than separately using codicils. Be sure your new Will complies with all the requirements necessary to make a valid Will. If you don't destroy your old Will, it might come back into force if your new one is revoked.

• In England and Wales (but not in Scotland) by marriage unless your Will states that it is made with your forthcoming marriage in mind. Your Will is automatically revoked by marriage unless:

1. You were planning to marry when your Will was made
2. Your Will names the specific person you married
3. You state that you want the Will to be effective during your marriage to that person

• In Scotland by the birth of a child if the Will doesn't provide for the child and you haven't shown your intention that the Will not be cancelled.

Except for the situations just mentioned, a Will remains valid for an unlimited period of time. Note that divorce doesn’t automatically revoke your Will.

You need two witnesses to sign your Will in England & Wales, but only one in Scotland. You'll need to choose people who aren't going to benefit from its contents.

The Government is currently considering a new Bill, which would make Living Wills legally binding. They don't have the force of law yet, so check with a lawyer whether you are likely to be able to enforce your wishes. A Living Will is for use in England and Wales but not in Scotland.

It is a way of letting doctors and family know what medical procedures you would not want to receive if, at the time the treatment was to be given to you, you were unable to communicate. Treatment could be for any current or future illness, or as a result of any future accident.
 
It is important to realise that a Living Will may only be used to refuse treatments or procedures. It is not possible to request specific treatments. You can use your Living Will to say what quality of life and level of treatment you would consider acceptable if you developed a terminal disease or if you were in a persistent vegetative state (an irreversible coma where you are only kept alive by artificial feeding devices).

When you give somebody Power of Attorney, you confer the authority to conduct legal and financial business on your behalf. However, an Attorney is not permitted to make any decisions on health care.

You therefore need to make a Living Will and appoint a 'Health Care Proxy' if you want to give somebody the power to make decisions on your future health care.

You should note that there are no laws in England and Wales about Living Wills, and whether such a Will will be considered enforceable depends on the way it is written and what it asks doctors to do.

The job of an executor is to handle the estate of the testator (Will maker) as set out in the person's Will. This takes place when the testator dies so it's impossible for you to act as your own executor.

No. You shouldn't change your Will by altering one you've already made. The best way to do it is to prepare a new Will, and include the fact that all previous versions are cancelled. It's actually a good idea to destroy all the copies of your old Will, just to make sure, once you have completed the new version.

Without a valid Will you can't control who inherits your property after your death. Should you die intestate (without a Will), your property will be handled by the courts, which could have very different results to those you had intended. In some cases where you have no traceable relatives, your estate may go to the Crown instead of the people you want to benefit. By making a Will you can decide exactly who will inherit your property and let your loved ones know that you have considered their needs.

Just as importantly, you’ll be able to decide who handles your property and who will act as guardian for your children if they are left without a parent. You can also use your Will to say whether you would prefer burial or cremation and if you would like to be an organ donor. Lastly, you might be able use it to reduce the amount of tax to be paid by people inheriting from you.

Every adult can and should make a Will. You need to be of legal age, which is 18 in England and Wales and 12 in Scotland. Anyone in active military service in time of war who is over 14 and wants to make a Will is allowed to do so. Underage seafarers can make a valid Will too.

You must also be of sound mind - understanding what you are giving away, how you are giving it away, and who you are giving it to. If you have a history of mental disorder or if an illness may be affecting your judgment in any way, consult a qualified doctor before writing your Will. This helps establish your competence and will be useful should your Will be contested later on the grounds of mental incapacity.

A process that gives the people carrying out your Will the right to deal with your assets and property. It acts as proof that your executors have the authority they need to administer your estate.

If you die without making a Will, or if your Will is invalid, you die intestate. The management of your estate, which is your house (if you have one) and any other assets minus all your debts, is then done by administrators (called ‘executors-dative’ in Scotland) appointed by the court, who will probably be your close relatives..

In some cases, your possessions may go to the Crown, but generally the bulk will go to your spouse or if you don’t have one, your children. If you have no children, other blood relatives are next in line. One in two people in the UK currently dies without making a Will and if you haven’t done so already, it’s a really good idea to prepare one.

In Scotland, the rules of intestacy allow your spouse and dependants to claim your property and money regardless of your wishes. If no surviving relatives can be found, your entire estate goes to the Crown.

Obviously, you should include exactly who will inherit your property, and what in particular each person will inherit. Just as importantly, you should choose the person who will be responsible for carrying out your wishes and who will act as a guardian to your children if they have no other parent.

You can also use your Will to say whether you would prefer burial or cremation and if you would like to be an organ donor. Lastly, you might be able use it to reduce the amount of tax to be paid by people inheriting from you.

Yes, and you can have up to four executors. Remember, though, that whoever witnesses your Will can’t be a beneficiary of it.

This is perfectly OK, but it might not be a good idea, because if your husband and daughter are witnesses to your Will they cannot be beneficiaries - i.e. they cannot inherit any part of your estate.

No, you don't need to take your Will to a court.  It can be witnessed by friends or anybody else you trust and it's perfectly legal.  The only people who shouldn't be witnesses are the beneficiaries of the Will - witnesses can't inherit anything from a Will they are witnessing.

Up to a certain value, the estate is exempt from inheritance tax, but once you reach that threshold, there are quite considerable amounts of tax to be paid. The rates to be paid vary from time to time but you can find the latest figures at the Inland Revenue website.

You can calculate the tax yourself by working through the Inland Revenue worksheet IHT/WS and completing forms IHT 200 and D18.

If you are finding the whole thing too much, then hand the tax calculation problem over to your local Capital Taxes Office and they will work it out for you.

Also known as an EPA, this document allows you to give somebody the power to act on your behalf, in matters of property and financial affairs during your lifetime. The power stays in force if you become medically incapable of dealing with your affairs. It is different to a Will, which comes into effect after death.

Yes, assuming you want your partner to inherit from you. It is very important for unmarried partners to make Wills, as without them, the surviving partner may receive nothing when the estate is distributed.