Danielle Wane has followed recent events on Coronation Street closely, having personal experience of losing a loved one in similar circumstances. She wants to make sure you and your loved ones are protected in the event of such upsetting and life changing events.
For those who watch Coronation Street, you will have seen the devastating storyline of Sinead Tinker suffering from cervical cancer. The character is a young woman with a small baby whom discovered that she had cervical cancer whilst pregnant. This week we shall see Sinead sadly pass away from this awful disease leaving a small baby and family behind.
Sadly, a lot of us will be able to relate to this storyline as 1 in 2 people are diagnosed with cancer during their lifetimes. I, myself, lost my dad to Leukaemia, who died at the age of 31, at the time I was a young baby.
Now being a mother of a small 18 month old baby myself, events in popular culture such as this week’s storyline make you reflect on life and question whether or not you have all of your affairs in order to protect those you leave behind, and to make life as easy as possible for them in the event of such upsetting circumstances.
On this note, the benefits of making a Will are immeasurable; not only does it give you peace of mind knowing that you have nominated your intended beneficiaries, you also have the option to include the comfort of knowing that you have nominated those who you trust to look after your children in the event that both parents were to pass away.
When making a Will you can appoint a Testamentary Guardian. This is someone that you nominate whom you entrust to look after your children in the event of your death. This is a vital thing to do to protect your children and make sure that they will be well looked after and in safe hands in the event of your death.
In the event of both parents of a child passing away, Social Services would become involved to determine who the best person to look after the child is. This is a very morbid thought but, providing you have your Will in place and you have appointed Testamentary Guardians within this, you will have peace of mind knowing that your children and loved ones will be protected should the worst happen and you were to pass away whilst they were still minors and whilst they were still financially dependent on you.
Other things you can do to protect your loved ones include nominating your intended beneficiaries of your life insurance policies, your pension and any death in service benefits.
Dangers of not having a Will
Similarly, for those who cohabit but are not married, if you died, your surviving partner would not be set to inherit from your estate unless you have made a Will and nominated for them to benefit under any life insurance policies or pensions. Without a Will, your Estate would be distributed in accordance with the Intestacy rules, which can lead to long distant relatives being set to inherit.
Even for those who are married, without a Will, your surviving spouse would only be set to inherit the first £250,000 of your Estate and the remainder would be distributed in accordance with the Intestacy rules.
Finally, often people assume that your loved ones can make decisions for you if you can’t make them for yourself e.g.- if you were in a coma, or lost capacity due to a stroke or dementia. This is not always the case.
It is therefore extremely beneficial to make Lasting Powers of Attorney for both Property and Finance and Health and Welfare to enable your loved ones to make decisions for you in your best interests in the event you could not make these for yourself.
East Lancashire Hospice Will Week
There has never been a better time to sort your Will with us here at Watson Ramsbottom. Watson Ramsbottom are committed to the East Lancashire Hospice Will Week, which runs from next Monday, 28th October to Friday 1st November 2019.
Under this scheme, we waive our normal fee to write a standard Will in return for each client making a donation to East Lancashire Hospice. We recommend a donation of £75 plus VAT per person and, for mirror Wills £150 plus VAT per couple. All donations taken in this week will be donated to East Lancashire Hospice to help them with their vital work to help care for patients with end of life care.
Don’t put off making a Will and call today on 01254 701111, or complete our Contact Form to make an appointment for a Free Consultation with a member of our Wills and Probate Team. Either I, or one of our Specialist Solicitors will be able to advise you on the best options available to you. We can also discuss the benefits of making Lasting Powers of Attorney.