Sitting down and making a Will doesn’t sound like the most glamorous thing in the world. Yet, making one could be the most important thing you do for your family or loved ones.
You’re taking the right steps by being financially prepared should the worst happen. The only thing is, are you sure the money you leave behind would go to the people you want? Maybe you got a life insurance policy to make sure that your kids can get an education. Maybe you want to make sure it’s spent on a mortgage.
A way to make sure that your insurance benefit goes where you want it to is by making out a Will.
If that sounds at all like it would be too much for you to contemplate, don’t stress. A Will could be a relatively straightforward document to use. In this article we’ll go through some of the potential benefits of having a Will, so you don’t have to worry.
What is a Will?
A Will is a legal document that gives instructions on your wishes when you pass away. It lets you decide ahead of time where you want your money, property, and possessions to go after your death. You can also include any wishes you might have around your funeral and what you want the ceremony to look like.
While you can get legal advice when it comes to a Will, you could also make one yourself without seeking legal advice. If it’s straightforward, you can even write it out yourself. From there you will need to get it formally witnessed and signed to make sure it's legally valid.
Getting Started with Writing a Will
One of the first steps of writing a Will is understanding how exactly you want things like money, assets, and possessions to be split up if you die. This means looking at all the assets you have. Your assets can range from your house to a family heirloom. Anything that is of value to you and you want to pass on to your loved ones.
It is important at this point to sit down with your loved ones and talk it over with them.
Other instructions can be included in the Will. This can relate to the technicalities of your wishes for a funeral. Often when someone dies, the last thing a family wants to think about is planning a funeral. Questions come up around things like religion, who you would want at the funeral and even things like what songs to be played at the funeral can cause anxiety.
A way to make sure some of these things are taken care of is by writing them into a Will.
What happens if you don’t have a Will sorted out?
If you were to die without a Will there are few things that can happen to your possessions. The main thing is that your possessions would go into what's known as “intestacy”. This is a set of legal laws that give instructions about where possessions should go in the case of the deceased having no Will.
There are a couple of important things to remember about this process. If you are married or in a civil partnership with the deceased, you will be named as a beneficiary. In the case of not being in either of those, you have no automatic right to inherit anything.
Situations, where the laws of intestacy apply, can often be stressful and can cause some anxiety. If you want to get informed about how the process works make sure to check out the Gov.uk website for more information.
Why is a Will important?
Before we begin examining the process of getting a Will there are a few things you need to bear in mind. Should you pass away there are a few things that will need to get sorted out.
One of the most important things is paying for a funeral. As it stands at the moment, the average cost of a funeral in the UK is around £4000. This figure is based on an essential funeral. What this means is that only basic costs are covered.
The reason this is worth mentioning is that when it comes to paying for it, some families may not be able to absorb a cost like that at the last minute. Families will look at a few ways of paying for the funeral if there isn’t enough cash around. Things that you were looking to pass on may be sold to pay for the funeral. The idea of getting a life insurance policy could avoid a situation such as this.
Start Planning today with Smart Life Insurance
If you aren’t sure that your family will be able to afford this cost and you want your assets to go to a few different places, a legal Will might be the best way to ensure this. Another way is by availing of our free legal Will Kit. If you decide to go with Smart as your life insurance provider, you will get one of these Will Kits. They are worth up to £100 each and can be another way to help you care for your loved ones.
