Wills | RMD & Associates

Wills & Lasting Powers of Attorney Specialists

Covering all of Wiltshire and the surrounding areas

Welcome to RMD & Associates. We make the process of making Wills & Lasting Powers of Attorney simple, straightforward and most importantly cost-effective.

We offer appointments in the comfort of your own home, either in person or via video. We are based in the county of Wiltshire but we deliver our services nationwide.

We put our client’s best interests first and offer a more personalised service than that of solicitor’s firms.

Book in for your free telephone consultation now.

PRACTICE

AREAS

Wills & Trusts

Top 10 reasons to make a Will:

To be able to decide who your Executors are. An executor’s role is to share out your money and assets in accordance with your will on death
To ensure your assets go to your intended beneficiaries and instead do not pass under the intestacy rules
To legally appoint guardians to look after your children if you die
To avoid claims being made on your estate
Avoid dis-inheriting children with remarriage
Inheritance Tax Planning
To avoid losing your entire estate to care home fees
Detail your funeral wishes
Make specific gifts or legacies
To protect your business

A Will should be reviewed every 2-5 years (maximum) and after any significant life event such as separation or divorce, getting married, growing your family, moving house or death of executors or beneficiaries named in your Will. Your wishes may not have changed but the law and your assets may well have.

Dying intestate (without making a Will)
The Laws of Intestacy

Be aware that without a valid Will in place your spouse would not inherit your full estate but would instead have to share it with your children. This could mean a forced sale of your home.

If you are unmarried your partner would not inherit anything unless your property is owned in a particular legal way.

If you have not appointed Guardians to care for your children on your death this can be immensely problematic for those left behind especially the children. The local authority would have the power to decide who is best placed to look after the children. If you are unmarried and not in a civil partnership your partner may not automatically become guardian to your children.

Please do not hesitate to contact us for further information and to check how the Intestacy Rules may apply to you and book in to make a Will to avoid the above situations.

Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA)

The most prominent word in the phrase ‘Lasting Power of Attorney’ is ‘Lasting’. An LPA is a legal document that ‘lasts’ beyond your incapacity. Unfortunately, it cannot be presumed that LPA’s are only applicable to those of a mature age. Mental capacity can be lost at any age even in the prime of your life in varying unfortunate circumstances such as illness or an accident.

There are two types of LPA’s and both are equally as important as the other:

The Property & Financial Affairs LPA allows you to appoint a person you trust (an attorney) to make decisions and run your financial assets should you not be in a position to do this for yourself anymore. The attorney(s) can authorise day to day expenditure on your behalf, access your bank accounts, pay your bills, collect pensions and benefits for you and even sell your home if necessary.

The Health & Care LPA allows you to again appoint a person you trust (an attorney) to make decisions about your health, care, and welfare should you not be in a position to do this for yourself anymore. This can include what medical treatments you should have, where you should live, your daily routine and end of life treatment for you.

You may be thinking is this really necessary?

The answer is yes. LPA’s can only be made whilst you have the mental capacity to do so. If you lose capacity without putting them in place the alternative is a much more expensive, stressful and complicated process in which an application will need to be made to the Court of Protection (usually by a family member) for a deputyship order. It can take many months for this to be finalised and in the meantime any assets sole or joint that you own will be frozen.

We insure most things in our life; our homes, cars, possessions and our lives. By making a Lasting Power of Attorney you are insuring your mind and protecting yourself, your family, your assets and your wishes for now and for the future.

Get in touch now to protect yourself and your family and to get the Lasting Power of Attorney paperwork underway.

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Wills

LPAs

OUR VISION

We are truly passionate about helping people understand the complexities of Wills & LPA’s in a clear and understandable way. We want to help you safeguard yourself, your family, your assets and your wishes for now and the future.

Please do not hesitate to contact us if you would like to discuss LPA’s or Wills further or to book in for your first appointment to get the paperwork underway.

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