Are you a cohabiting couple in Harrogate, wondering about Wills and what your legal entitlement is?
You may have heard the term common law partner or marriage and assumed this applies to you. Unfortunately there is no such thing as a common law partner. If you are unmarried or not in a civil partnership then you are not entitled to inheritance.
Regardless of how long you have lived together or how many children you have together, without a valid Will a surviving cohabiting partner will not automatically inherit anything from your partners estate. The Law of Intestacy will dictate who is to inherit.
It is vital that you have a Will in place for the following reasons;
- Your partner may be forced to move out of the house if it is to be sold to split the asset amongst the beneficiaries.
- If your partner relies on your income whilst they raise the children, they will not automatically received any funds for living expenses in the future. The children will inherit but the surviving partner won’t.
- There is no Inheritance Tax relief for cohabiting couples.
- If you have lived together for two years you could make a financial claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. There is no guarantee that you will be successful and this would be time consuming and stressful.
More information can be found at Citizens Advice but please do give us a call to discuss your Will. We can provide advice on Will writing, estate planning and any Trusts or Power of Attorney that may be required. Covering Harrogate and the whole of Yorkshire, help is only one phone call away.
