28m fail to make a will

Almost 60 per cent of UK adults have yet to make a will, according to new research.

Findings published on 1 September by www.unbiased.co.uk, which enables consumers to find professional advisers, revealed that 28.7 million people (57 per cent of the UK adult population) have not yet made a will.

Younger people are least likely to have made a will with nearly four-fifths (78 per cent) of UK adults in their 30s and more than two-thirds (68 per cent) in their 40s having no will in place.

For those approaching or in retirement, over half of people (54 per cent) in their 50s and 27 per cent of those in their 60s have yet to make a will. Among adults in their 70s, 85 per cent have a will in place.

When asked who they wanted to benefit from their will, those surveyed overwhelmingly said they intended their estates to help family members.

More than a tenth (11 per cent) of people without a will believe their estate will automatically go to the right person. However, with no will in place an estate will be divided according to the laws of intestacy, excluding unmarried partners and step-children.

When asked why they did not have a will, a quarter (24 per cent) said they planned to make a will when they were older and 18 per cent said they could not afford the cost of setting up a will.

Another 12 per cent said it had not occurred to them to make a will and nine per cent planned to put a will in place once they had children.