Can you “bulletproof” your will to avoid inheritance disputes?
With inheritance disputes going up by 140% between 2014 and 2024, can you “bulletproof” your will and avoid this eventuality? Read our top tips here.
In a recent article, you might have read about how even wealthy families can become financially vulnerable due to events outside of their control, such as an illness or injury.
The truth is, even after a person passes away, their wealth choices might not align with their family’s wishes, causing stress and potential disputes across the board. If you’re creating an estate plan, putting measures in place to reduce the chances of a costly dispute could help to preserve your wealth even after you’re gone.
Sadly, disputes and disagreements over estates are becoming all too common. Today’s Wills & Probate reports that court cases over wills rose by 34% between 2019 and 2024, and by 140% between 2014 and 2024. These disputes are costly, emotionally strenuous, and can last for years.
The question is: can you “bulletproof” your will to avoid disputes later on? Read on for tips that could help you do just that.
Write a letter of wishes to accompany your will
Although a letter of wishes is not legally binding, it could help your beneficiaries and wider family to understand your decisions.
Imagine that you have two children. One of your children attended university, and the other did not. You provided £15,000 of support to the one who attended university, while your other child entered the world of work straight away and didn’t need this financial backing.
You decide to balance the books where inheritance is concerned, leaving the child who attended university £15,000 less in your will.
Years later, during the will reading, your children might be very confused by this disparity. They might not remember how much financial support you offered decades ago, and feel that leaving an unequal amount to each of them is a slight on your part.
That’s where a letter of wishes could come in handy, as it gives you the space to explain your choices and put your loved ones’ minds at ease.
Have your will witnessed by a GP
As you age, one of the most important aspects of creating a will is being able to prove, without a doubt, that you retained mental capacity at the time of signing.
“Mental capacity” describes the ability to understand, make, and communicate your own decisions. For example, a person who develops dementia may eventually lose mental capacity.
Cases of cognitive impairment are only going up, meaning that more and more families could call a loved one’s capacity into question when challenging the decisions made in their will. Alzheimer’s Society says that around 1 million people in the UK is living with dementia, and this is set to rise to 1.4 million by 2040.
So, when creating or updating your will, it could be wise to have a medical professional – usually your GP – witness the document, even if you’re young and feel it’s “unnecessary”. They can testify that you retained full mental capacity at the time of signing, meaning that family members couldn’t legally argue that you made “mistakes” in your will due to a lack of capacity.
While it doesn’t remove the possibility of disputes taking place, this belt and braces measure might help you cover all bases.
Talk about your inheritance plans with your immediate family
Often, family members being surprised by the contents of a person’s will might be the catalyst for a lengthy, costly dispute.
Although it might seem like an uncomfortable conversation to have, talking to your spouse or civil partner, children, grandchildren, and any other beneficiaries about your will might smooth things over. You can explain, in person, why you’ve chosen to divide your assets in a certain way, and perhaps the reasons for leaving funds to chosen charitable organisations.
Some tips for raising the topic with family include:
- Choose a calm, quiet moment to raise the topic
- Approach the conversation with an open mind, being ready to hear what your loved ones have to say
- Come ready with reasons for the decisions you have made, making for a smoother conversation all round.
You can even introduce your beneficiaries to your financial planner, if you wish, letting us mediate those all-important inheritance discussions.
Get in touch to start your estate plan today
Estate planning is a crucial part of forming a robust financial plan.
On top of all the aspects above, taking Inheritance Tax into account while fulfilling your family’s wishes and expectations can be a tricky balancing act, often aided by the presence of a qualified financial planner.
We’ll discuss appropriate planning options with you and can connect you with legal professionals to help with the will writing process, if you wish.
Email us at hale@kelland.co.uk, or call 0161 929 8838.
Please note
This article is for general information only and does not constitute advice. The information is aimed at retail clients only.
All information is correct at the time of writing and is subject to change in the future.
All contents are based on our understanding of HMRC legislation, which is subject to change.
The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate estate planning, tax planning, or will writing.