This has been a really traumatic week for my wife and therefore, by extension, for me. Her father left no will!
Fortunately there are only 3 possible beneficiaries – my wife and her sisters – so it won’t be difficult to distribute the proceeds of his life (what a horrible phrase – makes me sound like a lawyer from Dickens’ Bleak House). But the problem of no will means that they have to apply for Letters of Administration before probate can be granted. I hope they agree to appoint a lawyer to do this as Dawn has had the horrible task of phoning all sorts of people to try and sort this out. And as I’m not a surviving relative, I can’t help her to do this as I have no authority.
When my father died, I knew exactly what to do and who to contact because his will was so precise. An added advantage was that I helped him to draft it so I knew exactly what he wanted when the executors were unsure (for very good reasons I wasn’t an executor).
Wills make sense. If you haven’t written one, please do so as soon as possible. The stress and distress that the lack of a will causes surviving relatives is awful and not something, I am sure, you would want to cause.
Don’t think about this, just do it!
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