Estate Planning FAQs

Estate planning is the process of putting the right arrangements in place to protect your assets, property and wishes during your lifetime and after your death.

Not necessarily. Being married does not mean your entire estate automatically passes to your spouse. Depending on the value of your estate and whether you have children, some assets may pass under the intestacy rules rather than directly to your partner, and unmarried partners get nothing automatically. A will ensures your wishes are legally binding.

A list of what you own (property, savings, pensions, investments and life policies), details of any debts, and the names and addresses of the people you would like to include in your plans. Don’t worry if you don’t have everything to hand. We can fill in the gaps together.

Typically a will, both types of LPA, pension nominations, life insurance in trust, any trusts needed, a record of your assets and wishes, and a plan for your business if you own one.

Now. Estate planning is not just for older people. Anyone with a home, children, savings or a partner benefits from having a will and LPAs.

Wills appointing guardians and setting up trusts for children, LPAs, life insurance in trust and pension nominations are the key priorities for young families.

Review your will, LPAs and pension nominations, any gifts you plan to make, your likely inheritance tax position and your wishes for later life.

Encourage them to make their own will and LPAs, and review your own will so ages, trustees and guardians are still appropriate.

Check whether they were an executor, trustee, attorney, guardian or beneficiary under your will or LPA, and update your documents if needed.

A document listing your bank accounts, investments, pensions, property, policies, debts and digital accounts, with contact details. It helps attorneys and executors find everything.

A personal letter to your loved ones sharing memories, values and life lessons. It has no legal effect but can be very meaningful.

It depends on your circumstances. Simple wills cost less than trust-based wills or business succession plans. Ask for a clear, fixed quote before starting.

No. It is mainly about making sure the right people inherit, protecting vulnerable family members, avoiding disputes and having trusted people ready to act if you lose capacity.

Not having a will at all, followed by not updating it after marriage, divorce or new children, and forgetting to update pension nominations.

The intestacy rules decide who inherits, the court may choose who manages your affairs if you lose capacity, and your family may face delays, extra cost and tax that planning could have reduced.

Choose a calm time, explain your reasons and share practical information such as where documents are kept. Open conversations reduce the chance of disputes.

Choose attorneys and replacements, decide how they act, choose a certificate provider, decide on life-sustaining treatment, add instructions and preferences, sign in the right order and register.

A plan covering where you would like to live, who should make decisions for you if you cannot (your LPAs), any advance decisions, and how your wishes will be recorded.

The original will, property deeds, bank and investment statements, pension and insurance details, share certificates, recent tax returns and details of debts.

Every three to five years, and whenever the law changes significantly, as it has with the 2026 farm and business relief changes and the 2027 pension changes.

The farm and business relief changes (April 2026) and pensions coming into inheritance tax (April 2027) mean more estates may pay tax. Many people are reviewing their wills, pension nominations and insurance.

The nil-rate band (£325,000) and residence nil-rate band (£175,000) remain frozen until 2031, 100% farm and business relief is capped at £2.5 million from April 2026, and pensions enter the estate from April 2027. The October 2026 Budget left these thresholds and rates unchanged.

The Law Commission’s 2025 report recommended electronic wills, lowering the minimum age to 16, a new capacity test and letting courts accept wills that do not meet formalities. These are not law yet.

The LPA registration fee rose to £92 in November 2025, a modernised digital service is being rolled out with identity checks, and Universal Credit no longer automatically qualifies for fee help from February 2026.

You can request an office copy from the OPG, for a fee. If you have an online LPA, attorneys can share it with an access code instead.

Ask about qualifications, insurance, regulation or professional membership, fees, storage options and whether they will supervise signing.

Choose friends or professionals as executors and attorneys, decide which charities or people should benefit, and record your wishes clearly.

Accidents and sudden illness can happen at any age. An LPA avoids the cost and delay of a deputyship application for your family.

Joint ownership with siblings or friends passes by survivorship if held as joint tenants. Check how assets are held so your will matches your wishes.

Keep originals in secure storage and a summary list at home saying where everything is, with our contact details.

Yes. Trusts, loans rather than gifts, and cohabitation or prenuptial agreements for your children can help protect family wealth.

A planned conversation, sometimes with a professional present, where you explain your plans to family members to reduce misunderstandings.

Yes. You are welcome to visit us at our offices, and we also offer home visits across all of our service areas at no extra charge. We also offer video consultations.

We cover South Wales (including Cardiff, Swansea, Newport and Bridgend), West Wales (including Carmarthen, Pembroke and Llanelli), Wiltshire & Somerset (including Trowbridge, Bath, Swindon and Frome) and Hampshire & Dorset (including Winchester, Bournemouth and Southampton).

Yes. We can prepare both types of LPA, guide you through choosing attorneys and wording, check signing, and register them with the Office of the Public Guardian.

Yes. We can review your current will and let you know whether it still reflects your wishes and your family’s circumstances.

Yes. Every fee is fixed and confirmed in writing before any work begins, so there are no surprises. Get in touch to discuss your circumstances.

Yes. We can take your instructions by video call. You will then receive the will to sign in person in front of two independent witnesses.

Yes. We can visit clients at home, in hospital or in care homes, subject to the care home’s arrangements.

Yes. Please speak with us about your situation. We can explain how inheritance tax thresholds work and help put the right wills, trusts and LPAs in place.

The testator is the person who makes a will. The older term “testatrix” was used for a woman, but “testator” is now used for everyone.

The wording at the end of a will confirming it was signed by the testator in the presence of two witnesses who then signed. It helps the Probate Registry accept the will without further evidence.

Per stirpes means “by branch”. If a beneficiary dies before you, their share passes to their own children equally, rather than being redistributed among the other beneficiaries.

“Issue” means all your direct descendants: children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren and so on.

A general term covering both executors (appointed by a will) and administrators (appointed when there is no will or no executor).

The person who has the right to benefit from trust assets, such as income or living in a house, for their lifetime under a life interest trust.

The person who inherits the trust capital after a life interest ends, for example children after their step-parent’s death.

Someone who inherits all or part of the residue, meaning what is left after gifts, debts and taxes.

A person who receives a legacy (a gift of money or an item) under a will.

A bequest is a gift of personal property, such as money or belongings, left in a will. The terms “legacy” and “bequest” are often used interchangeably.

A traditional legal term for a gift of land or property in a will.

Your estate is everything you own at death (property, money, investments, belongings) minus debts. For inheritance tax, certain gifts and trusts are also included.

The gross estate is the total value of assets before debts. The net estate is what remains after debts, funeral costs and liabilities.

Assets owned outright by the deceased that pass under the will or intestacy, as opposed to joint assets or trust assets.

An outright gift with no conditions or trust attached. The beneficiary owns it completely.

A gift that depends on a condition being met, such as reaching age 25. If the condition is not met, the gift passes elsewhere.

A right to property that is fixed and not dependent on a condition, even if enjoyment is postponed.

A power given to trustees or others to decide who among a group of beneficiaries receives trust property.

A trustee power to pay capital to a beneficiary early, for example to help with a house deposit. For trusts created since 1 October 2014, trustees can advance the whole of a beneficiary’s share unless the trust says otherwise.

A clause in a will or trust allowing professional executors or trustees to charge for their work.

A clause that protects trustees or executors from liability for losses, except in cases of fraud or dishonesty.

A gift that takes effect if an earlier gift fails, for example “to my son, but if he dies before me, to his children”.

A gift to a group, such as “my grandchildren”, whose members are identified at a set time.

Someone named on a nomination form, such as for a pension or death-in-service benefit, rather than in the will.

The Non-Contentious Probate Rules 1987 set out procedures for probate applications, including who has priority to apply when there is no will.

Disputes about a will or estate, such as challenges to validity, 1975 Act claims or disputes with executors.

A will takes effect on death and says who inherits. A trust is an arrangement where trustees hold assets for beneficiaries; it can be created by a will or during your lifetime.

Executors deal with the estate after death. Trustees manage trusts, which can last for many years. The same people often do both.

Probate is granted where there is a will naming executors. Letters of administration are granted where there is no will or no executor can act.

An EPA (made before October 2007) covers only finances. An LPA can cover finances or health and welfare, and has stronger safeguards.

The paper form used to apply for probate when there is a will.

The paper form used to apply for letters of administration when there is no will.

The form an executor uses to give up (renounce) their right to apply for probate.

The form used to give up (renounce) your right to apply for letters of administration when there is no will.

The form used to make a property and financial affairs lasting power of attorney.

The form used to make a health and welfare lasting power of attorney.

The form used to notify people named in the LPA that it is being registered.

The form used to apply for an exemption or reduction of the LPA fee.

The form used to search the OPG registers to check whether someone has a registered LPA, EPA or deputy.

The main application form to the Court of Protection, for example to appoint a deputy.

The assessment of capacity form, completed by a medical practitioner or other professional, for Court of Protection applications.

The Land Registry form used by personal representatives to transfer registered property to a beneficiary.

The Land Registry form to transfer the whole of a registered title, used for sales and gifts.

The Land Registry form used to register a restriction after severing a joint tenancy.