If you haven’t, you probably ought to – it’s only if you
make a Will that you can control what happens to your estate after your death,
and also who will be taking on the job of winding it up and distributing
the proceeds. If you don’t make a Will, the Intestacy Rules will decide
these issues for you – not always in the way you might have liked.
And even if you have, it may be time that its terms were reviewed – an
old Will may have become invalid or ineffective, wholly or partly, for example
if you have remarried or if one or more of the beneficiaries named in your
Will have died. It therefore makes sense to revisit the terms of your Will
from time to time, even if only to refresh your memory and make sure that
its terms still accurately set out what you would like to achieve.
Making or revising your Will also gives you an opportunity to make provision
for charities and other ‘good causes’ which you would like to
help with a financial gift. Our own local charity, CHAIN, relies for most
of its funding on grants, donations, legacies and contributions from those
who use its services – all of them entirely voluntary. Leaving money
in your Will to CHAIN will also benefit from Inheritance Tax relief – so
the money will not be subject to tax after CHAIN receives it from your estate,
and the amount of IHT your estate will pay will reduce too.
CHAIN does a fantastic job in the Hungerford area in providing help and activities
for the sick and disabled and others in need, regardless of their age and
financial circumstances. Run entirely by volunteers, it provides transport
to hospitals, clinics and surgeries, a regular Lunch Club, wheelchairs for
those who need them and the Handybus service for shopping trips and other
benefits such as trips to the ‘swimming for disabled’ facility
at the hydrotherapy pool in Swindon. Its expenses include the cost of publication
of CHAIN MAIL, office expenditure, mileage allowance for volunteer drivers
and the cost of maintaining the Handybus.
So if you are contemplating making or revising your Will, please consider
CHAIN for a possible legacy – even the smallest amount is certain to
be put to good use for the benefit of those who need and rely on its’ help.
The town’s solicitors who will provide the necessary help and advice
are –
Charles Lucas & Marshall, 28 High Street – tel 01488 682506
Dickins Hopgood Chidley, 42 High Street – tel 01488 683555
David Small, Crown Passage, 23 High Street – tel 01488 680701
McAuley & Co, Merlin House, Church Street – tel 01488 682348
David Small