Writing a will
07 Mar 2012 Leave a Comment
in Family Information, Legal Tips Tags: probate, Writing a Will
It is understandable why so many of us put off writing our wills, after all, who wants to think about what will happen when they die? But by protecting ourselves from a little unpleasantness now we may well be causing more grief for those we leave behind.
There are many reasons for writing a will, from finding that your possessions have had a sudden rise in value, plans to travel or live abroad, or thinking of buying a home – maybe you are thinking about getting a divorce and you will want to stop someone from inheriting from you, or have discovered that you are pregnant or have had a serious illness.
If you die without writing a will, you are said to have died intestate, around 60% of people are thought to die without leaving a will. There are strict laws governing how your estate will be handled if this happens. For example, this could mean for people who live England or Wales, are in civil partnership or are married and have children, the estate will be split so that your partner gets the first £125,000 and a life interest on half the remainder and any children will inherit the rest.
If you aren’t married or not registered as having a civil partnership, your need for a will is even greater, as your partner will only be able to inherit any assets that were joint owned, and everything else will be inherited by the deceased’s next of kin. If there are no surviving relatives when you die intestate, the crown will inherit your estate.
Wills aren’t just about dividing up whatever money you may have or about your home, they also allow you to make provisions for children and pets, specifying what you want to happen to them once you die, this makes sure that they will still be cared for in accordance to your wishes after your death.
It also allows you to perhaps return special gifts upon your death, which might mean the world to the person who gave it to you and gives you the chance to attach specific clauses to your bequests. Just remember though that things change, and so if you attach a clause be sure to allow some flexibility to allow for changes of circumstance.
There are many ways to write a will now, including online and “write your own” will packs. While these may be good if your situation is very straightforward, if you have a partner that you aren’t married to, or have children, live abroad or maybe have got a divorce and want to stop your ex-partner from claiming on your estate in the event of your death, you should really should consult a probate law solicitor. It costs an average of about £150 to have a solicitor check your will over, but for the peace of mind it brings, it is a small price.
Solicitors can also help make sure that you haven’t forgotten anything while writing your will, also by seeking advice early, you may be able to reduce the amount of inheritance tax payable for those you leave behind. Probate solicitors can also act as executors for a will, if your situation is fairly straightforward though, you may wish to appoint a trusted friend or family member as many solicitors and other organisations like banks take a percentage of the estate in fees to act for you and this can work out expensive – explore all your options thoroughly.
As no-one knows what the future holds, it is never to early to start thinking about writing a will, or to take the next step and protecting your loved ones by actually writing it. It is also important to remember to keep it up to date if your circumstance change.
Accidents in Public Places
24 Feb 2012 Leave a Comment
in Consumer Tips, Family Information, Health Tips, Legal Tips Tags: Accidents in public, Trips and falls
It doesn’t matter how carefully you try to avoid it, sooner or later most of us have an accident in a public place that wasn’t our fault. A large percentage of us are lucky and escape with only our pride seriously injured and nothing more then a twisted ankle, a couple of bruises or some stained clothing to show our misfortune. However, not all are so fortunate.
There are many public liability solicitors available to advise you if you find yourself injured after a serious slip, trip, or fall in a public place, but there are things you can do to assist them, and yourself before you even leave the scene of the accident.
For a public liability compensation claim to be awarded, you need to prove that the accident was not your fault but that the owner of the property where you were injured was the one responsible.
The first thing you (or someone who is with you, if you are too badly hurt to do it yourself) should do after seeking the relevant medical aid, is to report the accident to the owner of the property or a member of staff and ask to put a record of the incident in their accident book. If it is possible to gather the names and addresses of anyone who witnessed the accident, then it is best do so.
It is also a good idea to take photographs of the area where the accident occurred (your mobile phone is useful for this as many these days have in-built cameras) and if it was a trip then try and put something next to the hazard to help gauge the height/depth of the fault later. Ideally this should be a ruler, but a coin also works well and is something you are more likely to have upon your person at the time.
If you have any visible signs of injury then make sure you photograph those too, this includes any bruising that may develop later on – again using something like a coin to help show the size of the wound/injury.
If once you have spoken to a personal injury solicitor they have advised you to claim for expenses as part of your public liability claim, you should make sure you keep any receipts for travelling costs and prescription charges.
You can find a solicitor a number of ways, either using the phone book, or by looking for public liability solicitors online. Many will take the case on at a “no win, no fee” basis.
Flashed by a speed camera?
09 Feb 2012 Leave a Comment
in Driving Tips, Legal Tips Tags: Flashed by Speed Camera, Speeding, Speeding tickets
Speed cameras – The bane of the motorist’s life… We have all been there, going along the road, minding our own business and then we think we see a flash, the instant of tension as we wonder was it us or some unfortunate other that has been flashed by a camera. Then as the miles melt under the wheels, we almost forget it – till a week or so later, the envelope lands on our doormat.
What happens next?
The letter will ask you for information regarding who was driving the car, simply fill this in and return it to the police. If it wasn’t you driving and you aren’t sure who was, you can ask for a copy of the picture and if you can identify the driver you should give their details as it is a criminal offence not to and may result with you receiving a 12 month driving ban. After this there are a couple of things that could happen depending on how many points you have on your licence.
The first option is that you may just get a fine and three points, but if you already have nine points on your licence, or were driving well above the speed limit it is more likely that they will issue you with a summons for court. This has to be done within six months of the offence, or they cannot prosecute you.
Going to Court
Going to court can be really worrying, and it helps to have someone who knows what they are doing there to advise you. This is the time to seek out a reputable motoring lawyer , such as Richard Brown and Co, who can guide you through the whole process, answering your questions and concerns and attend the hearing with you.
They can play a vital part in helping you keep your licence by pleading your case if you need your licence to keep your job or to assist disabled relatives with their everyday lives.
Drink driving – the real cost
07 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment
in Family Information, Health Tips, Legal Tips Tags: Binge Drinking, Drink Driving
The government has been making a concerted effort to try and raise awareness of drink driving and its dangers by running their “Think!” campaign to highlight the way that driving under the influence of alcohol can ruin lives, and carrying out over half a million breath tests every year.
There are on average 3,000 people seriously hurt or killed on our roads every year due to drink driving and nearly 1 in 6 of all road deaths involve drivers who are over the legal limit for driving. It is more commonly young men between 17 and their late twenties who are involved, but they are by no means the only age group that drive while under the influence of alcohol. There has been an increase of female drink driving incidents over the past couple of years.
The effects of alcohol in your blood stream, whether you feel drunk or not, can include things like your reactions being slower so you need a larger stopping distance, misjudging the speed or distance of other vehicles or obstacles in your path, and your field of vision may reduce. Drinking also tends to make you feel overconfident, a danger in itself, as it will increase the likelihood of you making a bad decision and take unnecessary risks while you are behind the wheel making you a danger not just to yourself but other road users and pedestrians as well.
Although the legal limit (at time of writing) is 80 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, this can be hard to judge as it varies depending on your weight, age, metabolism and gender, as well as what you have eaten prior to starting to drink, your levels of stress, and the type and amount of alcohol you consume. The only way to be completely sure you are under the legal limit for driving, is not to drink alcohol at all if you are planning to drive.
It is also worth remembering that if you have had a drink the night before, that you may well still be over the limit the following morning. The only thing that will break down alcohol in your system is time – showers, cups of coffee and other helpful tips from your mates won’t make any difference.
The penalities if you are caught drink driving are severe, you can face up to 6 months in jail, a fine of up to £5,000 and a minimum 12 month driving ban. The endorsement for drink-driving offences will stay on your licence for 11 years. If you refuse to provide a specimen of either breath, blood, or urine for analysis when asked will also incur up to 6 months in jail, a fine of up to £5,000 and a minimum 12 month driving ban.
If you have been found to be over the legal limit and deemed to have been driving under the influence of alcohol it is important for you to seek legal advice as soon as possible. There are many solicitors who can advise you, you can search for motoring law solicitors online, in your local phonebook or get recommendations from people you know who may know of a smaller, local motoring lawyer like Richard Brown & Co in Peterborough, who specialise in this area of law.
