Planning for the worst-case scenario

Making a will can be daunting but planning for the future by making a will is the best way to have peace of mind for what will happen when you pass away. A particular aspect of your will that you may not have considered is what would you want to happen if disaster struck. 

Can you predict what is around the corner? 

An area we discuss with our clients is a default or crisis clause, which relates to planning for the worst-case scenario. In other words, making provision for a situation when everyone you would like to benefit under your will (your beneficiaries) has died before you. An example where this could occur is if you made provision for your spouse and children to inherit in your will, what would happen if they were all to predecease you? 

We would all like to think it is highly unlikely that such a scenario would occur but, unfortunately, we do hear about tragedies where whole families are killed in accidents, for example. Therefore, because none of us know what is around the corner, we would always advise you to think about such a situation when doing your will with us.  If the unthinkable did happen and you did not include a default clause in your will, your estate would be split as per the Intestacy Rules of England and Wales.

In relation to the above example of someone not being survived by their spouse and children who they had made provision for in their will, if you were survived by your parents, your estate would be split equally between them. 

Who inherits your estate, if it's not the people you planned?

The next question that you should think about is would you want your parents (for example) to inherit from your estate or not? It may be that you do not get on with your parents or there are other relatives who you believe need the money more. If this is the case, we would strongly advise that you consider who you want to benefit from your estate if the worst does happen. You may like to name certain family members, or friends, or even a charity which is close to your heart, as alternative beneficiaries. And naming a charity could even have tax benefits for your estate. 

Whatever your circumstances, we would strongly advise that, when thinking about your will, you consider who you would like to benefit from your estate if your first choice of beneficiaries are no longer alive when you pass away.