Who Will Inherit My Money if I Don’t Have a Will or Any Relatives?
According to a list held by the Treasury Solicitor, in 2019 there were 350 deaths in the UK where nobody has claimed to inherit the estate. By 6 July 2020, there are already 120 estates in the UK which have been identified by H M Treasury as having no claims to entitlement by beneficiaries. Where someone dies without any surviving relatives entitled to inherit, their estate passes ‘Bona Vacantia’ to the Crown.
If you die without a will, your estate will be divided in accordance a strict set of legal rules known as the Intestacy Rules. In short, your money and property will be divided between your closest surviving blood relatives, whether you want them to benefit or not. These may be relatives you are fond of but equally, may be relatives you have no relationship with or have never even met. If you have no traceable blood relatives then your estate will pass to the Crown.
If you would rather avoid leaving the distribution of your estate to chance, making a will is vital. Even if you do not have any family members to speak of, you may have friends or charities who are important to you. By making a will you choose who inherits your assets and in what proportions.
You can view the list of unclaimed estates here www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/unclaimed-estates-list – you might be surprised to find that there are thousands of estates that go unclaimed! Do not leave it to chance by forgetting to write a will or dismissing it as unnecessary.
Contact us to make your fixed-fee will today.
We offer more than a will writing service; we advise you on any complexities that may arise from your wishes and on how the construction of your will can make a big difference to how your estate is distributed. Whilst the process of deciding on your wishes can be relatively straightforward, the advice that underpins it should not be. We take time to explore with you the most suitable possibilities, and highlight issues that you may not even be aware of.
