"If you live with your partner, you might assume your assets will automatically go to them if you die. But think again. Under intestacy laws, cohabitees have no right to inherit and looming inheritance tax (IHT) changes could leave grieving families with even bigger bills. One survey by national will-writing campaign Will Aid found that most cohabiting couples are in the dark about inheritance rules, with many at risk of being cut out of their partner's estate entirely."
"Under these rules, unmarried partners even those who have lived as a couple for years or have children together are not automatically entitled to inherit. The survey found that 25 per cent of cohabitees mistakenly believed their estate would automatically go to their partner when they died - and 17 per cent acknowledged they had never even thought about it."
Cohabiting partners are not automatically entitled to inherit under intestacy laws and can be cut out of a partner's estate without a valid will. A national will-writing campaign's survey found 68% of cohabitees do not understand intestacy rules, 25% wrongly believe an estate passes automatically to a partner, and 17% had never considered the issue. If a person dies intestate and is unmarried, children inherit everything; if childfree and unmarried, estates typically pass to parents or siblings. Common law marriage does not apply for inheritance. Looming inheritance tax changes could increase costs for grieving families.
Read at www.independent.co.uk
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