Free Wills Month is here!

Free Wills Month brings together a group of charities and solicitors across the UK every March and October. It offers people aged 55 and over the opportunity to have a simple will professionally written or updated for free. 

It has three aims:

• To highlight the importance of having a professionally written Will
• To promote the option of leaving a gift in your Will to charity
• To raise money for good causes

Free Wills Month gives you the opportunity to provide for your loved ones and leave a gift to your chosen charities. It saves you money on solicitor fees too.

There should be a local solicitor in your area that is participating in Free Wills Month

Members of the public aged 55 and over can contact one of the firms of solicitors taking part during October to request an appointment.

The solicitor will help to draw up a Will that accurately reflects your wishes. 

Those taking up the offer are under no obligation to leave a gift to one of the Free Wills Month charities.

Appointments are limited and are allocated on a first come first served basis. 

Once all available appointments are booked, the campaign will close, even if this is before the end of the campaigning month.

Making clear your wishes 

An up to date, professionally-written Will ensures that when you die, your wishes will be carried out as you would have wanted them. 

It also avoids your family and loved ones having to face tough choices or legal complications after you die.

A Will can also reduce the inheritance tax bill on your estate. 

And if you leave 10% or more of your estate to charity when you die, your estate benefits from a reduced rate of IHT.

More complex wills

The free wills campaign only covers simple wills, so if your affairs are more complex you will need to take professional advice on the drafting of your Will.

Complex estates require careful planning when writing a Will in order to ensure all matters are properly taken care of, particularly when it comes to estate planning and mitigating inheritance tax. 

No will

Making clear in your Will what your wishes are will greatly assist your family in what is a stressful time for them. Leaving no will can create many issues.

For example, your spouse will not automatically inherit all your estate, and a long-term partner to whom you are not legally married may not be entitled to anything. 

If you die without making a Will, your estate is distributed in line with the laws of intestacy.  

See our previous article: The importance of leaving a will

In the first instance, with no executors named in a Will, your next of kin will be required to administer your estate. Not only may they not be the best people for the job, but the job itself could be more complicated and could involve tracking down distant relatives. 

Further information

Bishop Fleming’s Trusts and Probate team are well equipped to review your personal circumstances, provide you with an estimate of your exposure to inheritance tax and provide advice on mitigating that exposure.

You can find more information on our Trusts and Probate Services page.

If you would like to discuss how taxation of the family can impact your decisions, please contact a member of our Trusts & Probate team who will be pleased to talk to you.

Watch our Inheritance Tax, Estate Planning & Probate Webinar here.