Making a Will Need Not Be as Difficult As You Expect

Making a Will

“Knowing where to start is often a daunting task”

Knowing where to start is often a daunting task!

Here is some advice on how it all works and what is important to know

Your will lets you decide what happens to your money, property and possessions after your death.

If you make a will you can also make sure you don’t pay more Inheritance Tax than you need to.

You can write your will yourself, but you should get advice if your will isn’t straightforward.

You need to get your will formally witnessed and signed to make it legally valid.

If you want to update your will, you need to make an official alteration (called a ‘codicil’) or make a new will.

If you die without a will, the law says who gets what.

Write your will

Your will should set out:

who you want to benefit from your will
who should look after any children under 18
who is going to sort out your estate and carry out your wishes after your death (your executor)
what happens if the people you want to benefit die before you

Make sure your will is legal

For your will to be legally valid, you must:

be 18 or over
make it voluntarily
be of sound mind
make it in writing
sign it in the presence of 2 witnesses who are both over 18
have it signed by your 2 witnesses, in your presence
If you make any changes to your will you must follow the same signing and witnessing process.

When you need legal advice

You can get advice from a professional if your will isn’t straightforward, eg:

you share a property with someone who isn’t your husband, wife or civil partner
you want to leave money or property to a dependant who can’t care for themselves
you have several family members who may make a claim on your will, eg a second spouse or children from another marriage
your permanent home is outside the UK
you have property overseas
you have a business

Making changes to your will

You can’t amend your will after it’s been signed and witnessed. The only way you can change a will is by making an official alteration called a codicil.

You must sign a codicil and get it witnessed in the same way as witnessing a will.

There’s no limit on how many codicils you can add to a will.

Update your will

You should review your will every 5 years and after any major change in your life, eg:

getting separated or divorced
getting married (this cancels any will you made before)
having a child
moving house
if the executor named in the will dies

Making a new will

For major changes, you should make a new will.

Your new will should explain that it revokes (officially cancels) all previous wills and codicils. You should destroy your old will by burning it or tearing it up.

Keep your will safe – You can keep your will at your home or store it with:

your solicitor
your bank
a company that offers the storage of wills – you can search online
the London Probate Service
You should tell your executor (the person you’ve chosen to carry out your will), close friend or relative where your will is.

More Information

More Info