Reviewing Your Will – Why Bother?

Here at Fiona Bruce we advise our clients, as many other solicitors would do, to review their Will every five years.

You may wonder, why bother? Some may think it isn’t needed; once they’ve got a Will they are sorted. 

However, there are a number of reasons for why you may wish to review your Will and it is important to note that reviewing it does not necessarily mean that you have to change the Will. 

There are two major reasons for why you may wish to amend your Will. The first is a change to legislation, such as that relating to Inheritance Tax provisions. A change to this legislation could mean that your Will is no longer making full use of the Tax Rules available. 

The second reason to consider a change to your Will is due to a change of personal circumstances. This could be personal or financial and upon any major life changes, you would be advised to review the Will and ensure that it does still reflect your wishes. 

As there are many reasons an individual may change their Will, this article will not be a definitive account, however we will discuss some of the main reasons.

Change in Relationship

If you enter into a marriage or a Civil Partnership then any Will you have previously made will be revoked unless it is made specifically in anticipation of that union. 

If you divorce or dissolve a Civil Partnership then the gifts to the former partner would be treated as not being in the Will when you pass away. However, until a divorce or dissolution is finalised your former partner may still end up inheriting if you do not take action to change the Will. 

Upon separation from a partner you may wish to amend your Will to ensure that they do not inherit in the event that you were to die while divorce/dissolution proceedings were ongoing. 

Appointment of Executors

When making your Will, you will name one or more individuals whom you wish to act as your executors. You may wish to amend this from time to time for a number of reasons. If the person named has predeceased you and you have not appointed a substitute then you would need to make a new Will appointing the person(s) you wish to administer your estate.

Another common change is to appoint adult children as executors in a new Will. At the time the previous Will was made, the children may have been unborn or under the age of 18 meaning they wouldn’t be able to act. 

Similarly, if an elderly executor is no longer able to act then you may wish to appoint someone in their place. 

Gifts of Specific Items

You may wish to make gifts of specific assets under your Will. In reviewing a Will, you should consider whether you still own the item and whether you still wish the beneficiary to receive it. If the beneficiary has predeceased you, you may wish to consider whether you wish to give it to another or let the gift fall into the residuary estate. 

Change in Your Financial Circumstances

If you receive an unexpected gift on the death of a friend or relation then you may wish to consider how this could affect your estate. You may wish to look at whether it will change your potential inheritance tax liabilities and how you might restructure the Will accordingly. 

If you have a Will and have not recently reviewed it, contact us today for a free no-obligation quotation.  

The contents of this article do not constitute legal advice and are provided for general information purposes only.