Why make a Will?

1. (c) Omega Wills Ltd

2. Wills & Associated Services
Click to continue…
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3. Outline of this Presentation
• The Purpose of this presentation is to:
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– Impress upon you the importance of having a valid Will
– Outline why you should consider making A Lasting Power
of Attorney (LPA)
– Inform you of the facts
– Keep the presentation interesting and, hopefully,
somewhat light hearted
– Answer some of your questions!
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4. Introduction
• About Omega Wills:
– Omega Wills Limited (OWL) was established in 2004
– OWL provides a range of Will writing and associated services such as:
• Simple Single & Mirror Wills
• Complex Family Wills
• Incorporation of Trusts within a Will
• Inheritance Tax (IHT) planning
• Protection of Assets
• Funeral Plans
• Probate Services
• Lasting Powers of Attorney
• Document Storage
– We visit clients in the comfort of their own home or office; at a time
suitable to them
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5. • OWL (continued):
– Is a Registered Member of The Institute of Professional Willwriters (IPW)
– Has £5 million public liability and
– Has £2 million professional indemnity insurance
– Is a member of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB)
– Is approved by the Trading Standards Institute (TSI)
– Conforms to The Data Protection Act
– Maintains Continual Professional Development Training
– Is based in Whyteleafe, Surrey and covers areas
• Mainly inside the M25
• Surrey
• Parts of Kent, Essex & Middlesex; and
• Central London
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Introduction
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6. • If YOU don’t make a Will…
– You are NOT MAKING PROVISIONS,
– You are leaving things to others, or
– You are leaving things to chance.
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Wills
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A Will is a legal declaration by which a person, the
Testator, names one or more persons to manage his or
her estate and provides for the distribution of his
property at death.
A Will must conform to the following criteria:
i. A Will must be in writing
ii. The Testator must be clearly identified
iii. A Will must revoke a previous Will
iv. The Testator must have capacity
v. A Will must be Executed correctly
If you own overseas assets; it may be necessary to have
more than one Will
A Will is an ambulatory document (Revocable, Subject to
change, up in the air) which has no effect until:
1. The testator has died
2. It has been proved by the Probate Registry
(subject to the size & type of estate)
What is a Will?
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8. Why make a Will?
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9. Everyone has a Will!
You either make your own
Or
The Government has one for you!
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Why make a Will?
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10. It’s called Intestacy.
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Why make a Will?
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11. 11
Yes No
Yes No
No No
The following cannot inherit unless included in a Will: No
 unmarried partners
 lesbian/gay partners not in a civil partnership Do you have grandparents? Yes
 co-habitees
 step children No
 relations by marriage
 close friends
 carers
 charities
No
Are YOU married / Civil Partner
Shared equally between
them (or their children if
parent(s) pre-deceases).
Shared equally between
them.
GOVERNMENT GETS IT ALL
Spouse gets £250K, personal
chattels and half the remainder of the
Estate - Outright. Balance to the
children (or their children) at 18yrs.
Disclaimer:
This flow chart is based on assets solely owned by the deceased and does
not include jointly held assets. Effort has been made to provide accurate
information however, changes in law affects each person differently. This
information is provided as a general guidance only and not about an
individual specifically. We, therefore, accept no liablity to any person or third
party if they or their representatives rely on this information.
Spouse receives the
WHOLE Estate
Do you have
brothers/sisters? (First of the
full blood then of the half blood).
Yes
Shared equally between
them (or their children if
parent(s) pre-deceases).
Spouse gets it all No
Is your Estate worth
more than £250K?
Do you have children? Yes
Do you have uncles/aunts?
(First of the full blood then of the
half blood).
Yes
Shared equally between
them (or their children if
parent(s) pre-deceases).
Yes
Do you have
children?
Do you have parents? Yes
Shared equally between
them.
Intestacy flowchart
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12. Without a Will…
• Gifts may end up with the wrong person
• The person you wanted to get – may not
• Your natural children may be disinherited
• Your assets may end up with the GOVERNMENT
• Natural Fathers may not have Parental Responsibility
• Your Children may be taken into SOCIAL CARE
• You could cause HEARTACHE to your loved ones
…and…
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13. Without a Will
Dark clouds appear.
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14. With a Will…
• Guardians can be appointed for your children
• Ensure your assets are distributed how you want
• Make specific gifts to friends & family
• Help protect your assets
• Help protect against Inheritance Tax (IHT)
• Help protect Business assets (100%) from IHT
• Make gifts to Charity
…and…
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15. With a Will:
Sunshine breaks through
the gloom.
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16. Wills – A Rough Outline of Contents
• Revocation
• Appointment of Executors
• Funeral Wishes
• Guardianship
• Specific Gifts or Legacies
• Trusts
• Residuary Estate
• Substitutes for each of the above
• Attestation/Execution
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17. Inheritance Tax (IHT)
• IHT - the current position
– The current Nil Rate Band (NRB) allowance is £325,000
– This can be doubled under certain circumstances
– Gifts to a Spouse or Civil Partner are exempt of IHT
– However when gifts are made to non spousal beneficiaries
(including 2nd death) then IHT is due @ 40% on anything
above the NRB
– Skipping a generation can help save against IHT
– Putting assets into a Discretionary Will Trust can also help
save against IHT
– Nominating certain types of assets can save against IHT
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18. • There are two main types of ownership:
– Joint Tenants
• This is where each party owns 100% of the property
• The property passes by the Law of succession
irrespective of what is entered in a Will.
– Tenants in Common
• This is where each party owns the property as shares
– Assumed as 50% each unless stipulated elsewhere
» (such as in a Declaration of Trust)
– The share of the property can then be gifted as part
of a Will
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The Family Home
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19. Joint Tenants
• This is where each party owns 100% of the property
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The Family Home
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20. Joint Tenants
• The property passes by the Law of succession;
irrespective of what is entered in a Will.
100% for Me
I love you I love you too
The Family Home
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21. Tenants in Common
• This is where each party owns the property as shares
(assumed as 50% each)
50% for me
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I still love you
The Family Home
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I still love you
I still love you too
50% for me
Tenants in Common
• This is where each party owns the property as shares
(assumed as 50% each)
The Family Home
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23. Tenants in Common
• UNLESS Stipulated elsewhere
(such as in a Declaration of Trust)
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The Family Home
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24. • To change from Joint Tenants to Tenants in Common you must
Sever the Joint Tenancy (SJT)
• Once completed the benefits are:
• Put share of assets into Trust (saving IHT for future
generations)
• Protect Surviving Spouse from being forced to sell
• Protect share of property for children from a previous
relationship
• Help protect share of property from Bankruptcy
• Help protect share of property from Divorce
• Help protect against Long Term Care Fees
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The Family Home
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25. Think carefully about what you want.
Don’t let the Inheritance Tax Tail
Wag the Will Dog.
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26. Travel FIRST class in your life.
Because if you don’t…
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27. …your children will!
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28. Digital Assets
• Think about all the different types of ‘Online’ accounts you
have
– Google, Hotmail, Facebook, Twitter, Blogs
– E-Bay, Amazon, YouTube
– PayPal, Bank Accounts, Stocks & Shares
– The list goes on.
• There could be a lot of value & important information tied up
across all of them
• Each one requiring a means of access
– User name
– Password etc
• How would your Executors access these accounts
– We can help organise your accounts in a clear & concise manner
– Helping your executors to access them when required
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29. Pre-Paid Funeral Plans
• Why Bother?
– Funeral costs are soaring
• The average cost in 2011 was £3,368
• The projected average cost in 2021 is £6,701 (almost double)
– Guarantee tomorrow’s costs at today’s prices
– Get your affairs in order – 1 less thing to worry about
– Your loved ones don’t have to ‘find’ the money to pay for
your funeral
– Omega Wills are authorised agents for several of the
country’s top Funeral Plan Providers
– Money is held in an independent Trust Fund
– Bespoke plans available including Repatriation
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30. Probate Services
Unless there is no other option or special circumstances
NEVER appoint an Executor who is:
• A Bank
• A Solicitor
• A Willwriter
Wherever possible appoint:
• Next of Kin
• Children
• Relation
• Beneficiary
REMEMBER an Executor can always take professional advice
without handing over power.
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31. Probate Services
However! In case you need us…
– We offer a range of Probate services that can be as much
or as little as required by our clients
– We work with Top Probate firms
– All fees are agreed in advance
– All accounts are transparent
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32. Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)
• What is an LPA?
– An LPA is a document in which you determine who you
wish to act for you, should you lose capacity
– Before an LPA can be used it MUST be registered
• What happens if you don’t have one?
– Very difficult & costly if application (Court of Protection –
(COP)) is made after loss of mental capacity
– COP may choose your attorneys
– May appoint themselves
– Levy charges against your estate
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33. Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)
• What happens if I do have one?
– You decide who you wish to act
– You can appoint more than 1 Attorney
– You can appoint substituteAttorneys
– You can appoint them to act together or independently
• Protective Measures
– Registration
– Mental Capacity Act 2005
(an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom applying to England and Wales. Its primary
purpose is to provide a legal framework for acting and making decisions on behalf of adults
who lack the capacity to make particular decisions for themselves.)
– Act in the best interests of the donor
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34. Summary
– Why bother to make a Will
• We have outlined numerous reasons why you should
make a Will
– Intestacy
• What happens if you don’t have a Will
• The Government is one of your potential beneficiaries
– Inheritance Tax
• How to help save against paying this particularly
nauseating tax
– Protection of assets
• Including the family home
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35. – SJT
• The two main ways of owning you home & why SJT is
beneficial
– Digital assets
• What is a digital asset
• How would you access digital accounts
– Funeral Plans
• Pay now save later
– Probate Services
• Only if you have to or want to
– Lasting Power of Attorneys
• Make your own choice or someone else will
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Summary
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36. One Final Thought:
If you don’t mention Who gets What in the first
place then, when you’re gone, Who you didn’t
mention may end up getting
What you didn’t want them to get
AND
What you didn’t mention may not end up
with Who you wanted to get.
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37. If you want Somebody to get Something make sure that
Someone with power to give your Something, knows who the
Somebody is.
Otherwise, Anybody could get the Something that you wanted
Somebody to get and if Anybody isn’t around then Nobody will
get it
And if Nobody gets it, then the Something you wanted
Somebody to get, and which Anybody could have got but which
ended up with Nobody, belongs to…
THE GOVERNMENT
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To put it another way…
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38. Helping you through life’s eventualities.
01737 558 642
info@omegawills.co.uk
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