It doesn’t matter how big or small the inheritance you’re leaving behind for your beneficiaries is, the truth is that there are a few common problems that could affect how you’d like your estate to be wrapped up. We’re talking about lost assets, ambiguous language that confuses your beneficiaries, fighting amongst the family, and more.

Here’s a closer look at some of the common problems that your beneficiaries could face – and how you can avoid them.

The Wrong Executor

The reality is that the executor of your Will has a duty to administer your estate in accordance with the interests of your beneficiaries. Ideally, your executor should keep your beneficiaries informed of progress – if for no other reason than to prevent these bereaved individuals from assuming the worst, like inefficiency, ineptitude, or something more sinister.

This is why it matters who the executor of your Will is, so pay particularly attention to who you are appointing.

Avoiding Conflicts Of Interest

It’s more common than you think to appoint someone who is a beneficiary as the Executor of your Will. This doesn’t necessarily result in a conflict of interest, however any actions taken or decisions made by the executor have to be in the interests of the estate and all beneficiaries.

Again, this is why it matters who your Executor is. You genuinely need to trust that this person will be capable of acting accordingly. The last thing you want is for your executor to be accused of any wrongdoing. To avoid any potential conflicts of interest, you should consider appointing a co-executor who isn’t a beneficiary.

This way, if there are any difficulties between the executor who is also a beneficiary and any of the other beneficiaries, there’s someone else to iron out the conflicts.

Lack Of Clarity

Once your Will has been drawn up, read it carefully to make sure that you are aware of its terms and how these will be understood. The fact is that beneficiaries encounter more issues following a deceased person’s last wishes due to an incomprehensible Will than any other challenge.

The best you can do is make sure that, at the very least, you understand your own Will.  

Missing Items

If your Will includes gifts of personal items, these items will need to be dealt with according to the specific terms of the Will. Unfortunately, when your property is dealt with too hastily, items go missing. It’s the responsibility of the executor to either sort through or arrange for all personal items mentioned in the Will to be dealt with.

The key is to ensure that these items are clearly listed in your Will, and depending on what they are, stored in a way that will prevent them from accidentally being tossed out after your passing.

Exclusions

For whatever reason, you may decide to leave certain family members or friends out of your Will. These exclusions need to be made perfectly clear in order to avoid a claim being made that your Will is invalid. Ambiguous wording will help your executor communicate openly and to share what information they have about the Will – the kind of information that does all the dotting and crossing of the Ts and Is.

Interpreting The Will

The last and most common problem that beneficiaries encounter is when the Will is poorly drafted or homemade. This when you find that the terms of the Will are unclear, making it difficult for your executor or beneficiaries to decipher exactly who gets what.

Sometimes, though, it’s not that the Will was badly drafted. It could be that your intentions have been misunderstood or that you’ve made promises over the years that you didn’t include in your Will.

That’s why it’s so important to have your Will drawn up by legal experts you can trust to ask the right questions in order to accurately interpret intentions and to follow this up by correctly wording what it is that you want done with your estate after your passing. You should also have the freedom to update your Will along the way.

Feeling Informed?

Whether your beneficiary is entitled to inherit a small personal item, a share or even the majority of your assets, this is an extremely stressful time for them. Hopefully this information can help you avoid some common problems on behalf of your beneficiaries.

More than this, though, we can point you in the direction of Capital Legacy, trusted legal experts who can draw your Will up at no cost at all – making sure that your exact wishes are fully and accurately drafted into this essential document. Click here for your free Will.