CHANGES IN INHERITANCE LAW
From 1st October 2014 the Inheritance and Trustees’ Powers Act alters the rights of people whose spouses or civil partners die without making a Will.
The changes will affect a large proportion of the population given that over two thirds of us die without having made a valid Will.
Under the new rules where there are no children and the spouse or civil partner dies without making a Will then the surviving spouse or civil partner inherits all of the estate. The old provisions would only have given them £450,000 with the remainder split between other relatives.
Where a spouse or civil partner dies without making a Will but leaving children the surviving spouse or civil partner inherits £250,000, plus half of the remainder. Under the old rules the surviving spouse only had a right to receive the income from half of the remainder which on their death would then pass through to any children of the deceased’s spouse.
There is also a change to previous rules which meant that children lost their right to inherit from a parent’s estate when they turned 18 if they were adopted by another family before that age.
All in all the new rules are a step in the right direction, but they are no substitute for making a Will where you can property provide for those you need to take care of and would like to provide for (whether or not they are related to you in either case). You can also make provision for the care of any under age children and the management of money on their behalf.
