Do I need a Will? I question that I am asked sometimes. Absolutely, if you were to die intestate (without a Will) could your spouse survive on £250,000 and the interest on half of the rest of your estate – not the capital?
Cohabiting partners are not automatically eligible to inherit anything from their partners estate unless they have a Will.
Your children and grandchildren would receive from your estate at age 18. Would you want them to have access to all that money at such a young age? Would you not prefer that they were 21 or even 25?
Your friends and charities who you may have supported during your life will never receive from your estate on death.
It should be noted that if the family home is held jointly and not as Tenants in Common then the house will pass automatically by survivorship and so will not form part of the £250,000/£450,000 legacy.