Top Ten Poor Excuses For Not Making A Will

As a senior estate planner, Robert Monahan has heard every excuse for not having a Last Will and Testament in place.

Strained family relations, busy schedules and even fears of conjuring up bad luck are among the reasons Australians are giving to putting Will-making in the “too hard basket”, according to Mr Monahan.

Australian Executor Trustees, a national financial services firm specialising in estate planning, has prepared its list of the Top Ten Poor Excuses For Not Making A Will. Mr Monahan said the list contained the most popular excuses given by Australians for not preparing a Will, however none provided a sufficient reason for not securing one’s wishes.

“We’ve heard every possible excuse why people have not made a Will,” Mr Monahan said. “Many people, it seems, do not place the importance needed on estate planning when in reality, there is no excuse to not have a Will in place. “If you die without a Will, which is called intestate, your assets are divided up according to state-based legislation. As such, your estate may not be distributed according to your wishes with some family members whom you may have wished to benefit, left out entirely.”

One of the most popular excuses given for not making a Will is time constraints. “Many people say they are too busy to sit down and prepare a Will. They tend to feel it is a very complicated procedure that will take days to work out,” Mr Monahan said. “However, Wills can now be made online or a professional estate planner can help make it a very straightforward and relatively hassle-free process.”

Another excuse is that they have already told family members how to distribute their assets. “Verbal agreements are fraught with danger and difficult to prove. Unless your wishes are properly documented in a Will there is no guarantee your estate will be distributed as you intend,” he said. “Others say ‘I won’t be around to worry about what happens to my estate’; but this may leave the way open for another family member or close friend to contest the distribution of the estate, proving stressful, costly and time-consuming for those involved. “Similarly, family tensions are even more reason to prepare a will to ensure your estate is distributed to beneficiaries of your choice which may include friends, charity organisations or environmental causes.”

Mr Monahan said young people often feel they have not accumulated enough assets to prepare a Will. “Wills are not just for the rich and elderly. Young people, for example, are likely to have particular wishes about who they would like to receive their car, savings or even particular sentimental items,” he said. “Some people also feel uncomfortable about their own mortality and think making a Will may bring bad luck. In such cases, it is paramount the estate planner is able to assist with the documentation in a sensitive way.”

Mr Monahan said it was a false assumption that an estate would pass automatically to a partner or spouse, particularly in the case of de-facto relationships. “In some intestate cases a de-facto spouse may receive nothing,” he said.

Mr Monahan said Australian artist Brett Whiteley, who had a well-known aversion to lawyers, opted to write his own Will. The Will was later misplaced and a battle for his estate ended up being fought out in the courts. “Not having a Willis like throwing a deck of cards in the air,” Mr Monahan said.

“It is almost impossible to predict what will happen. There are also many cases where home-made Wills have cost relatively small estates tens of thousands of dollars.”

Top Ten Poor Excuses For Not Making A Will

1. I’m too busy to prepare a will
2. I’m too young for a will
3. I’ve already told my family who I want to get my money
4. I’m single
5. It’s not my problem
6. I don’t like my family anyway
7. I don’t have much money in the bank to worry
8. Even if I die intestate my partner will get my money
9. I don’t like lawyers
10. It’s bad luck

Chelsi firmly believes everyone should prepare a will and forget the excuses.

Media contact: Strategic Public Relations, 08 8363 1158.