- Without a will, fixed intestacy rules decide who inherits, and an unmarried partner gets nothing automatically.
- A will lets you choose your executors and name guardians for children under 18.
- Getting married or entering a civil partnership normally cancels an existing will.
- It’s worth a fresh look after any big change: a move, a birth, a separation or a new property.
What happens if there’s no will?
The intestacy rules take over. They follow a fixed order: a husband, wife or civil partner first, then children, then other relatives. They don’t know about your partner of twenty years, your stepchildren, your best friend or the charity you care about.
Sorting out an estate without a will also tends to take longer, and the people left to deal with it may not be the people you’d have picked.
What a will lets you decide
- Who inherits. Specific gifts (a ring, a sum of money) and the “residue”: everything left once those gifts and any debts are dealt with.
- Your executors. The people who collect everything in, pay what’s owed and share out the rest.
- Guardians for your children. Who you’d want to bring them up if both parents have died.
- Trusts within the will. For example, holding a child’s share until they’re older, or letting a partner stay in the home. See Trusts.
- Your funeral wishes, if you want to record them.
When to review your will
A will is written for the life you have on the day you sign it. Worth a look if you have:
- married, entered a civil partnership, separated or divorced
- had children or grandchildren, or become a step-parent
- bought, sold or remortgaged a property, or started letting one out
- lost someone named in your will, or fallen out with them
- moved between England and Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland
How we do it
We start with a conversation about your family, your property and what you want to happen. Your will is then drafted by [to confirm] and we go through it with you line by line before anything is signed.
A will must be signed in front of two independent witnesses who are both present at the same time. A witness, or their husband, wife or civil partner, shouldn’t be someone who inherits under the will, or their gift can fail. We explain exactly how to sign it so it stands up.