Common Mistakes

I'll make my will tomorrow

Terrible self-delusion, for young and old alike. If you are young and have children, a will protects your children by appointing guardians. If you are old and, daily, getting older, procrastination poses numerous dangers. Time, of course, may simply run out on you. And even if you progress into even older old age, the longer you wait, the greater the risk of mental deterioration - or a challenge to that effect, even if you die with all your wits about you.

Where's the will?

Is it in your sock drawer or desk? Stored with your solicitor? In a safe? If it is in the safe, where is the key or what is the combination? Make life easy for your survivors and executors by providing ready access to your will.

Signed, sealed, witnessed, dated, clear, accurate...

Killing several mistakes with one headline: Has your will been properly signed and witnessed? Does it contain the date? Have you given something that you no longer own to someone who might no longer be alive? Many wills have basic mistakes and end up being invalid.

And on the matter of proper witnessing...

It is simple, it is easy, it is fundamental, just about everyone involved in will knows about it - and still it often gets cocked up. When a will is signed, the person doing the signing and the two witnesses must be in the room together. And the witnesses should do what their title suggests: observe the testator in the act of signing. A witness should not attest as a witness to a signature they did not see being signed - to one that was signed earlier and is already on the paper.

Perfect will today, imperfect tomorrow

Wills should be regularly reviewed with an eye to revising them. Babies are born - babies whose names might need to be inserted into a new will or codicil. Witnesses, beneficiaries, executors and other relevant individuals die. Some people win the lottery or lose their shirts on the stock market. Wills need to reflect significant changes in financial, family and other circumstances.

When £50 is really £500

Many will-writers advertise their services in local newspapers and claim that the will will cost a certain (usually small, even ridiculously small) amount. Not all of them volunteer the information that extra charges might apply, or be applied, for additional services, such as will-storage. The final bill is often higher than the advertised rate.

Will-storage that isn't!

Many wills have disappeared along with the will-writer who wrote them and received an extra fee for storage. Solicitors, banks and other institutions are safer bets than semi-professional will-writers operating from high-street shops or their homes.

The wife/husband will get everything anyway

Some people do not write a will on the assumption that their other half will get everything anyway. In many instances, they won't. Assets will be distributed according to a legally-prescribed formula, and spouses can get much less than they expect, or need.

Giving with conditions

A grandfather leaves a small fortune to his daughter Doris and specifies that, when she dies, she should give the remainder to her son ( his grandson), Gregory. But Grandpa can not direct the terms of anyone else's will. Doris is free to dispose of the loot as she wishes. You can not dictate in your will what someone else should do with their will. To control future distribution, the testator should create a life interest - the beneficiary receives benefits but does not own that which provides the benefit. A testator's wishes, whether expressed in the will itself or in an accompanying statement of wishes, carry only moral, not legal, weight.

Giving what you don't have

When you drafted your will, you bequeathed your Rolls Royce to your car-crazy nephew Norman. Later, your stocks and shares fell off a cliff, and you sold the Roller. Alas, you also forgot to amend your will. Norman gets nada.

Who's Who?

What's in a name? Plenty of potential trouble, especially if the name is common. You know that the Ann Jones you cite in your will is your granddaughter, but what if another Ann Jones claims that she is the one you meant. People, and charities, have full formal names and addresses - and in the case of charities and other institutions and organisations, you should provide other specific identifying information. As the recipients of your generosity, they will be more than happy to provide you with the correct formula.

Property, Ownership, Occupancy

Jane, a widow, moves into the home of John, a widower (or John moves into Jane's home). Both have children from previous relationships. John thinks he has organised his will such that Jane can continue living in the house, after which it passes to his children. In the event, the house is sold by the executors and Jane suddenly finds herself homeless.

Right Idea, Wrong Executor

A testator appoints a solicitor, bank or other professional to act as executor without ascertaining the type of fee that will be charged (flat rate versus percentage) or the likely amount. Family members or other beneficiaries can then be stuck with a pricey professional who will mightily resist all requests to step down.

Your executor is your will-writer!

Some individuals or organisations will draft or help you draft your will, even do it for free - all the while insisting or encouraging you to name them as executor. Free for you can than become a whopping fee lopped off your estate after you die.

Move Abroad to Avoid Inheritance Tax

British domiciles are taxed at 40% on their worldwide assets. The key word in that sentence is domicile. You can change your residence, even permanently, by moving to another country. But to escape the long arm of the taxman, the thing that needs shifting is your domicile, not your residence. And changing domicile is altogether different, and much harder to achieve. Your relocation can even be financially self-defeating if you don't protect your assets in your new country with a separate will and financial planning.