The time to update your will is today, not tomorrow

At the time of writing this nearly 60,000 South Africans have lost their lives to the Coronavirus.  This means that there are more than 60,000 families who have to start picking up the pieces of their lives, many while they themselves are battling the effect of the illness or are in quarantine because they were exposed to a family member who passed away.

In ‘normal’ circumstances it is already difficult for the spouse to deal with the paperwork in the event of a husband or wife’s death: waiting for the death certificate, looking for the Will, all while they are also grieving.

But in the world we are in today the situation is worse because of the circumstances: because no one is allowed at the bedside of the patient, there are probably none of those ‘last words’ to let the family know who to contact or where the Will and other important papers are kept. An otherwise already awful experience is aggravated because of the general confusion surrounding a Covid19 patient’s death.

Nobody likes being reminded of their mortality, but the most decent thing you can do for your family today is to check that your Will is updated, and your estate plan can be executed.

IMPORTANT THINGS TO CONSIDER

1. Do you know where your Will and important papers are kept?
2. Does at least one other person in the family know who to contact about your Will?
3. Is the person you appointed as executor still alive?
4. You have appointed your spouse as executor of your estate, but the Master of High Court these days are not keen to appoint as executor somebody whose normal job is not the administration of estates.  Although it is not illegal to appoint your spouse, know that they might have to consult a professional to assist with administration of the estate
5. Who are the beneficiaries of your policies? Are they still alive? Do you still want them to receive the proceeds of your policies?
6. Is there sufficient cash in your estate to pay all debts and estate costs?
7. You might think that the money in your pension fund is sufficient to provide for your family but it could take up to a year before they can receive an income from these types of savings
8. Where is the money for the funeral and the first few month’s living expenses coming from?
9. If you are a business owner, what will happen to the business in the event of your death?

If you are worried about any of these issues, we will gladly help you get your affairs in order.  We have partnered with Legatumadmin to help our clients get their Wills sorted quickly and efficiently.  We also have a number of highly qualified financial advisers who will be able to analyse your circumstances and tell if your provisions for your family in the event of death will do the job.