Have you checked your luggage allowance?

We spend an awful lot of time preparing for our holidays, in particular making sure we’ve packed everything we might need, yet all the time trying to ensure that we haven’t exceeded that dreaded luggage allowance. Why then, do we not spend enough time preparing for life’s closing journey? 

I recently carried out a presentation about making a Will at a local care home and when I asked the audience how many of them had a Will in place I was pleasantly surprised to see that the majority of the hands shot up in the room. This is despite the fact that a survey conducted by unbiased.co.uk in 2011 concluded that more than 60% of the population in the UK did not have a Will. However, when the audience was faced with the question “how many of you have reviewed your Wills in the last three to four years?” there was a significantly smaller show of hands waving at me.

A Will should be viewed as a work in progress and a reflection of your current wishes and situation. Occurrences that might merit you reviewing your Will include: your emotions or feelings changing; the arrival of new children, friends or relatives, or even their sad departure; you have recently married or divorced; a change in your health or the health of another family member; or your assets either decreasing or increasing. 

Speaking of assets, have your assets exceeded the current luggage allowance? Have you checked to see what that is? The current inheritance tax threshold for an individual is £325,000. The threshold for married couples or civil partners could potentially double this to £650,000 upon the second death. Although, depending on your circumstances this might increase to £1m for couples by 2020. However, the rate of inheritance tax sits firmly at 40% on any assets owned above the threshold being utilised. 

Before you check in for your next trip, and by that I mean something new has occurring in your life, ask yourself: should I review my Will? If you need help reviewing your Will, then please feel free to contact me on: 01869 252161 or sofiagalic@brethertons.co.uk