Homes & Property

Benefit charity in your will

London solicitors are offering to draw up wills for free in return for a donation to charity. The deal, available in November and with more than 250 legal firms involved, is part of the annual Will Aid campaign.

The suggested donation is £75 for a single person’s will or £110 for a couple, with the donations being shared between charities including the NSPCC, Save the Children UK and Action Aid. Donations also qualify for Gift Aid tax relief, boosting their value.

Why make a will?

Most people do not have a will, but dying “intestate” can lead to loved ones not being properly provided for. Couples living together who are not married have no automatic right to inherit when one partner dies without a will. And while current law offers protection for spouses and civil partners, they can still be required to share the estate with other.

Where there is no will and the estate is worth more than £250,000, the excess has to be split between the surviving partner and children. Where there are no children, the parents and siblings of the deceased can also be entitled to a share.

Visit www.willaid.org.uk or call 0300 0300 013.


Published: 28 October 2009
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