Making sure your loved ones are looked after Writing a Will is a good way to ensure that when the time comes your loved ones receive the things you want them to. If you have young children it is important to ensure that they will be looked after by someone you choose rather than going into the social care system and that the guardians you appoint have some financial assistance in order to help raise your children.
It may concern you that if you leave your family home entirely to your spouse and they re-marry your home could be passed to their new spouse upon their death, or it could form part of any future divorce settlement. A surviving spouse could also become subject to long term care fees or bankruptcy and the entire home could be lost. You can make plans to ensure this doesn’t happen by writing a Protective Property Trust. This would mean that your share in the family home is left to your children but your spouse/partner can remain living there.
Helping your loved ones look after you So what happens if you become unable to take care of yourself and your finances due to illness or an accident? Your relatives would have to apply to the court of protection to obtain access and take control of your assets and finances, this can be a lengthy and expensive process. Instead you can create a Lasting Power of Attorney. This gives another person or persons the authority to look after specific aspects of your financial affairs and or health and welfare should you lose the capacity to do so. There are two types of Lasting Power of Attorney’s, one for Property and Financial Affairs and one for Health and Welfare. You can write one of them or both, in relation to the Property and Financial affairs, this can become active at any time. The Health and Welfare one can only be used once you have lost capacity. Having a Lasting Power of Attorney in place will make the process of accessing and taking control of your assets simpler and quicker, which in the event of incapacity due to accident can be a great help.
How We Can Help Significant offer a complete Will Writing service, which includes all aspects of Basic Will Writing through to Trust Writing and the writing of Lasting Power of Attorney’s. We can offer guidance, information and assistance in any of these areas. Please feel free to contact us at your convenience and we can arrange for one of our advisers to meet with you and discuss your concerns and requirements.
