WILL this ensure they don't get a single penny?

[Maskless]

I have no partner and no kids. Purely from my own hard work I now own a house outright and have money saved. I have never received anything by way of inheritance.

Since childhood I've been treated badly by my only living relations, who are my five half-siblings. They have routinely excluded me from everything family-related on the grounds that they are full siblings whilst I am only half; also there is a massive age gap: when I was a child they were already married and raising families and lived nowhere near me, so that pushed further out into the cold.

I have a dozen nieces and nephews some of whom I have met once or twice but that was decades ago. They must all have children and grandchildren by now.

In view of the poor treatment meted out to me by my step-siblings, I want to make absolutely certain that none of my relations get a single penny of my estate when I die.

I bought a Will Form from WHSmith and have filled it in and had it witnessed by two people, leaving everything to friends. My question is: is this enough? Is there any way my distant blood relations could contest this and get my estate?

Should I pay a solicitor to draw up another will? Would that will be a more "official" and "uncontestable" one than that which I have done myself?

If I do hire a solicitor, do they hold a copy and act as my executor, or is it better to make one of the beneficiaries my executor? I'm leaving a fair amount but it's not even a million so I don't want to waste any of it on massive legal fees unless this is essential.

Thanks for any advice.

I'd go through a solicitor to ensure it's watertight. "Not even a million" is a lot of money for your relatives to receive against your wishes.

I'd go through a solicitor, I think it is worth the money. You can make a beneficiary the executor. Do you need to have two executors or can one person be nominated? Limited legal knowledge here which is why we went to a solicitor to make our wills.

It's your will and has been signed and witnessed so ok. My only ' hmmm ' about it , is where is it kept ?
If a relative got hold of it they could get rid and technically claim as next of kin.
If you trust your executor , you could give them a key and tell them where you keep it , and ask that they collect immediately once you die.

Can you name them in the will as getting zero. So they can’t argue you forgot to include them. Your will shows that you fully intended to leave them nothing?

Is this of interest to you OP? www.willaid.org.uk/

See a solicitor who specialises in Wills and make it with them. It needs to be watertight- you should state why you are making the choices you are making and it needs to be expressed appropriately, a solicitor will know about this.
DH's grandma did this - left money only to two GC and not the other two. She stated clearly in the will- on the advice of the solicitor - why she had made that decision. Her solicitor specialised in elderly people' s estate management, wills and assessment of mental fitness to make a will. It closed down any challenges.

Marlow Wills advertises here and Mumblechum is so lovely and helpful. I would recommend paying her to write your will best to spend £250 for complete peace of mind.

If a beneficiary is to be executor, they can not also witness the will- or could be accused of applying pressure to their own benefit. A solicitor will charge a great deal to be executor. It is better to have two independent people who you trust absolutely to carry out your wishes as executors.

A cheaper option is that once a year you can get a will done for free at many firms and the idea is that you make a donation to the charity in your will.

Just googled and loads of charities advertise this year around now!

Cancer, GOSH, guide dogs...

www.guidedogs.org.uk/guide-dogs-free-wills/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwm9yJBhDTARIsABKIcGYJz795wV6AD5qO0bi1tfqGeS5ci1GJNSj68tx2QgZTAoxVPjfHtRUaAhFXEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

I'd also go via a solicitor and tell your executor who your solicitor is so they can liaise with them. It's a good point that your will needs to be kept out of the hands of any of these people in the event you die. We have a will which ensures (in the event that Dh kids and I died together) that one sibling won't inherit - we have just named the beneficiaries we want and not that sibling. We have explained to the solicitor that this sibling is not to get a penny. That note should be kept on file so if the sibling was stupid enough to contest, there would be no grounds. You are not responsible for providing for your half siblings in the same way a parent might have to, so therefore I don't imagine there would be grounds for them to contest. Hopefully you will outlive them all anyway.

A solicitor can store the Will so it could not be destroyed after your death by someone who came across it,.

I think I’d have your split it or be the executor just you have peace of mind relatives won’t be bothering any friend of yours if they were executor. As you want this watertight this would seem sensible. There will be a fee obviously to come out of the estate. Tbh if you are selling a house etc and at the level of estate yours is there will be probate and all sorts of tax allowances the estate can claim etc - a huge thing for a friend to take on. Good luck.

There is a v longstanding MNer named mumblechum who does wills and will advice. She pays to advert on MN, and I'm fairly sure plenty of posters can vouch for her service.
A will that has been witnessed by two people of sound mind shouldn't really be contested though.

Definitely worth getting one done via a solicitor. You can then tell them why you're wanting to exclude your relatives and they'll have a note of that on their files in case of it being contested. They'll also be able to advise on if any relatives would have a legitimate claim or not.

I've had clients who have had their wills disputed. (I'm an accountant). Having the solicitor able to sign an affidavit to confirm what the deceased told them as to decisions made in the will usually sees off any legal challenge. I've likewise also been asked to sign an affidavit to confirm what a deceased client has told me (from my files), in respect of a disputed will.

Just having a will witnessed by random neighbours or friends simply doesn't cut it if there is any possibility at all of legal challenges as there's no official record of your reasoning behind the decisions you made.

‘Have your solicitor be executor’ that should read.

Get it done properly and use a solicitor. You have more reason than most to have a water tight will that no one can argue with.

@CovidPassQuestion

There is a v longstanding MNer named mumblechum who does wills and will advice. She pays to advert on MN, and I'm fairly sure plenty of posters can vouch for her service. A will that has been witnessed by two people of sound mind shouldn't really be contested though.

Depends. Some people think they are writing a clear will which no one could dispute, but legal language matters and anything ambiguous can be a loophole for an aggrieved relative.

@RandomMess

Marlow Wills advertises here and Mumblechum is so lovely and helpful. I would recommend paying her to write your will best to spend £250 for complete peace of mind.

She did my parents POA and she’s really good

If you have a trusted and capable friend then they can certainly be an executor. Is the money situation quite straightforward with no complicated assets? If it is then maybe ask the person you would like to be an executor and see if they are happy to do it.

I paid and did it properly.

I would also explain your reasoning in an accompanying letter and the reasons why you are leaving a certain amount to someone else.

I once read that a will can be contested if you left nothing, but if you leave them all something then it can not be contested.

Would you be happy to leave each of them the tin opener, the novelty tea towel, the one odd glass type of thing if it guaranteed they’d not be able to claim a few thousands in cash from your estate?

If I was you I’d see a solicitor for some sound advice.

Your relatives are not dependents, the only way they could contest your will is on the grounds that you didnt have capacity to make it or that it contains errors that make it invalid. Leave a letter stating your reasons for leaving them out of your will. Witnesses cant be beneficiaries, executors can be beneficiaries and frequently are.

They could destroy your will if they found it, they would then inherit. So you need to ensure they can not get access to it. Employing a solicitor who will keep a copy for you is the safest way to be absolutely sure you get your wish. However you could also read up online or in a book (Read one years ago, dont know if it is still in print) about common pitfalls in wills and give the original and a copy to trusted friends.

Get it done by a proper solicitor to make sure it’s watertight

The solicitor can advise about executors and it’s important I think in your circumstances that the solicitor keeps the will

Getting a will done by a solicitor isn't expensive.
In the circumstances you describe there should be no problem at all in making sure that your relatives don't get any money.