Alpha Estate Planners

Welcome

2010-02-08T10:22:00.000-08:00

Many people are daunted at the prospect of making a will and it is a sad fact that, according to a Law Society survey, over 70% of people in the UK have not made adequate arrangements.

Alpha Estate Planners is a business formulated specifically to offer a bespoke will writing service to clients in the comfort and privacy of their own homes.

From simple wills to more complicated inheritance tax planning vehicles, Alpha can help. With over fifteen years experience in the will writing profession we are ideally situated to provide you with all the advice and guidance needed.

Making a will is a simple task providing specialist advice is available. Whether you are concerned about the appointment of guardians, reducing inheritance tax or protecting your assets from potential future marriages or the local authorities, Alpha Estate Planners can help.

Our fee structure is transparent and reasonable. Our service is thorough, comprehensive and professional.

For a free will consultation or if you have a question relating to wills or probate issues, please email us or telephone on 020 8305 9678.

All other pages must be dated before the Welcome page

2009-02-14T03:35:00.000-08:00

I have a history of elderly mental illness in my family. Should I give power of attorney now?

2009-02-10T22:05:00.000-08:00

The 2005 Mental Capacity Act changed the rules regarding power of attorney significantly.

Enduring power of attorney documents are no longer valid as they were extremely easy for unscrupulous family, friends or professional advisers to use fraudulently. Banks and other financial institutions were accepting these documents without any form of court recognition of the existence of the documents or the attorneys they appointed.

The new lasting powers of attorney (LPA) need to be registered with the courts and stamped on every page before they can be acted upon. The new registration process also allows for a reasonable amount of time for people to object to the appointment of the attorney.

As a result of the additional complications associated with creating LPAs, the fees for these documents have risen since 2005. That said, Alpha Estate Planners have very reasonable rates for drawing up a pair of LPAs.

I am worried about losing my children's inheritance to the local authority to pay for long term care fees. What can be done?

2009-02-10T22:00:00.000-08:00

Long term care fees are becoming more of a worry every year. Planning your estate(s) to protect from this becomes notoriously difficult the older you become in life.

It is almost impossible if you are the last of a couple still alive, and even more so if care is already required.

This is a difficult question to answer succinctly here but please feel free to get in touch to talk through the available options.

I have wills that were made to save IHT over five years ago. Do I need to update them now?

2009-02-10T21:57:00.000-08:00

As the use of discretionary will trusts has now become questionable, it is essential that you take advice on your current wills.

The rules are fairly complicated and difficult to neatly summarise here. Please get in touch and we will be happy to discuss this issue with you further.

Has the Inheritance Tax (IHT) allowance doubled recently?

2009-02-10T21:56:00.000-08:00

We are asked this question a lot and the quick answer is no.

Life would be easier if this was the case however we now have a rather complicated and convoluted way of calculating IHT when the last of a married couple dies.

The chancellor has allowed for a surviving spouse to leave their late spouse's allowance as well as their's if the late spouse left everything to them. The allowance has not been doubled at all for any single people or unmarried couples.

This has now made the use of discretionary trusts within wills a bad idea.

My partner has died without a will; we have both been married before. What should I do?

2009-02-10T21:53:00.000-08:00

This is an unfortunate position to find yourself in. To summarise the law relating to this situation:

Assets held in joint names with the deceased will pass to the survivor immediately.
Assets held in the sole name of the deceased will be distributed via the Law of Intestacy. This may result in the deceased's children inheriting the estate, leading to the survivor claiming under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975. This may not result in a positive result for the survivor.
Even worse, if the deceased was not fully divorced, his first spouse could be the person required to deal with probate etc.

Why should I use a professional will-writer?

2009-02-10T14:06:00.000-08:00

A professional will-writer will:

be fully aware of even the most recent changes in legislation.
typically be a member a professional institute such as the Institute of Professional Will-writers (IPW)
carry professional indemnity insurance of at least £2m.
have also achieved level 1 clearance from the OFT with regard to their systems and procedures, with level 2 expected to be achieved for all members late in 2010.

All of this means that you can expect high levels of expertise and service relating to all aspects of wills and probate law.