A Will is just as important for singles as couples

Published: 12/10/2015

Many people put off making a Will fearing it’s a daunting task and wanting to avoid the emotions they feel will arise when they write a Will. Others feel that in their circumstances a Will is unnecessary. This can be a commonly held view of single people. Head of Wills and Probate, Linda Cummins explains why a Will is just as vital for a single person as for a couple.

“Single people can feel that a Will isn’t important, particularly if they are childless as they think there’s no need to formalise who will inherit in the event of their death. However, the distribution of the estate of anyone dying without a Will would be subject to the Rules of Intestacy. These rules set out who will manage, administer and inherit from your estate – typically your next of kin in a fixed order. Single people may well have close friends and family friends who are like family to them who would not inherit under these rules. Making a Will gives the opportunity to honour those friendships by making a bequest to help friends financially or by making a gift of a precious keepsake. The may also want to make gifts to Charities who have special meaning to them. Writing a Will also prompts other considerations, such as choosing executors and having a Will in place can avoid disputes amongst family and friends, at what is already a stressful time.

“As a single person it’s also vital to think carefully about the storage of your Will in order to avoid any unnecessary administration. Many law firms offer a Will Storage service and this can be a particularly valuable service for single people to ensure that the Will can be accessed on death. Another benefit is that here’s usually the opportunity to store other related documents such as property Title Deeds or a Lasting Power of Attorney.

“So I feel that it’s just as important to write a Will if you’re single as it would be if you were married or in a civil partnership.”

Content correct at time of publication