A Will with "Guidance". Problems?

Chris75

We are considering new Wills. The executors who are the only beneficiaries other than the charities discussed below will be close family members who we trust.

We want to give some money to Charity but we don't want to specify an amount as who knows what the estate will be worth at the time of our death. We also don't want to specify a portion of the estate because it might encourage a charity to query the valuation of the estate & we don't want that possibility as our families last memory of us.

What we would like to do is put a "suggestion" in the Will that the executors, entirely at their discretion, should give approximately 25% of the estate to a list of four charities. We are sure that the family would regard this as an instruction but it would prevent anyone else querying what they had done. It would also allow the family to override our wishes if one or more of them was in real need of the money. Family comes first.

We accept that our executors might choose not to go with our wishes but we can live with that. We trust them. We can also see the problem that the executors might not agree on how much the charitable donation should be. We would not wish, however unlikely, to cause a family conflict.

By giving 25% of the estate to Charity we would currently get the reduced rate of Inheritence Tax. We could "suggest" that each beneficiary, at their discretion, gave 25% of what they received to charity but I think that they might loose the Government 4%.

Can a Will give "guidance" rather than "instruction"?
Can anyone see how we might preclude the possibility of a disagreement between family members (executors) about how much to give?
Can anyone see any other problems?

securityguy

"Can a Will give "guidance" rather than "instruction"?"

You would need good legal advice. What you are effectively doing is setting up a discretionary trust, with pretty unimpeded powers for the trustees. If the trustees decided to, say, give 100% of the money to their pet cause, there wouldn't be much the other prospective beneficiaries could do about it.

"Can anyone see how we might preclude the possibility of a disagreement between family members (executors) about how much to give?"

Then it wouldn't be a discretionary trust, and the charities could demand their fair share.

Yorkshireman99

Chris75 wrote: »

We are considering new Wills. The executors who are the only beneficiaries other than the charities discussed below will be close family members who we trust.

We want to give some money to Charity but we don't want to specify an amount as who knows what the estate will be worth at the time of our death. We also don't want to specify a portion of the estate because it might encourage a charity to query the valuation of the estate & we don't want that possibility as our families last memory of us.

What we would like to do is put a "suggestion" in the Will that the executors, entirely at their discretion, should give approximately 25% of the estate to a list of four charities. We are sure that the family would regard this as an instruction but it would prevent anyone else querying what they had done. It would also allow the family to override our wishes if one or more of them was in real need of the money. Family comes first.

We accept that our executors might choose not to go with our wishes but we can live with that. We trust them. We can also see the problem that the executors might not agree on how much the charitable donation should be. We would not wish, however unlikely, to cause a family conflict.

By giving 25% of the estate to Charity we would currently get the reduced rate of Inheritence Tax. We could "suggest" that each beneficiary, at their discretion, gave 25% of what they received to charity but I think that they might loose the Government 4%.

Can a Will give "guidance" rather than "instruction"?
Can anyone see how we might preclude the possibility of a disagreement between family members (executors) about how much to give?
Can anyone see any other problems?

Sorry to be blunt what you are proposing is a recipe for chaos, conflict, confusion and court action. Don't do it! A will that is not concise and accurate is a very bad idea.

Jenniefour

A charity is unlikely to query the value of an estate if the executors know what their duties are and carry out them out properly e.g. keep a meticulous set of accounts.

A good solicitor should be able to offer advice on the "what if..." scenario's, and how to address them (if appropriate) in a clear, unambiguous manner in the will. I think what can be confusing is that will's are often referred to as the "wishes" of the author, but it's more helpful to regard them as a instructions.

Mojisola

Jenniefour wrote: »

A charity is unlikely to query the value of an estate if the executors know what their duties are and carry out them out properly e.g. keep a meticulous set of accounts.

Some charities will do just that.

Our solicitor advised that we left set amounts because of experience with charities arguing about the price a property or other high value items were sold for.

Jenniefour

Mojisola wrote: »

Some charities will do just that.

Our solicitor advised that we left set amounts because of experience with charities arguing about the price a property or other high value items were sold for.

Interesting, and well worth knowing.

Chris75

Thank you all.

I did wonder if it would cause complications.

The trouble with a set amount is that we do not know what the estate will be worth when we die. If we set a specific amount now and then we have had nursing home expenses etc it might leave very little for the family and if we are in a nursing home changing the will might be something we cannot easily achieve.

As the saying says "no good deed goes unpunished".

Sea_Shell

If you can afford it now, why not give monthly to charities of your choice, and then don't do the will thing. That way at least you can control how much they get, without leaving yourself short.

Chris75

Sea_Shell wrote: »

If you can afford it now, why not give monthly to charities of your choice, and then don't do the will thing. That way at least you can control how much they get, without leaving yourself short.

Because the amount that I would like to give in the will is much greater than the amount that I would wish to deprive myself of now. One of the nasties of getting old is that you really don't know what the last few years are going to cost you. Nursing/care homes at £1000+ per week eat up money very quickly. Leaving money to my family is the more important to me.

Margot123

Even a simple will can end up complicated. If your family is most important to you, then why not 'give' to the charities another way while you are still alive? By that I mean voluntary work, fundraising etc. Leaving a sum of money will just add to the trauma/expenses of the executors/beneficiaries, and could be quite protracted. Charities don't have emotions so will fight for their money even if it causes stress to your family. The only winners, as I see it, will be the charities and their lawyers. See what you can do about volunteering, it will also keep your mind and body active, and is so rewarding.

Sea_Shell

But by not giving whilst your alive, everyone could end up with nothing, IF you do end up having to use all your money for care etc.

It sounds like giving to charity is very important to you, so how would you feel if that scenario played out?

Personally I would go down the route of a set percentage of the estate to charity, and hope that you have an executor who would not feel bullied or intimidated by them. Although surely pushing to maximize the estate benefits the other beneficiaries too!!