Understanding the Rules of Intestacy in the UK

What are the intestacy rules?  

Intestacy rules determine how an estate is distributed when someone dies without a valid will (intestate). The rules vary across different parts of the UK and understanding them is crucial for ensuring your clients' estates are managed according to their wishes.  
   
The rules differ for England and Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. Let’s look at these differences:  

Intestacy rules in England and Wales

• Spouse or Civil partner
  • No children - The spouse or civil partner inherits the entire estate.
  • With children - The spouse or civil partner inherits the first £322,000 of the estate, all personal possessions, and half of the remaining estate. The other half is divided equally among the children.
• Children - If there is no surviving spouse or civil partner, the entire estate is divided equally among the children. 
• Other relatives - If there are no children, the estate is distributed among other relatives in a specific order of priority (as shown in our easy-to-follow flow chart below). 
   

The rules of intestacy - England and Wales

Intestacy rules in Northern Ireland

• Spouse or Civil partner
  • No children
    • Estate up to £450,000 the spouse or civil partner inherits the entire estate. 
    • Estate over £450,000 with other relatives the spouse or civil partner inherits the first £450,000 of the estate, all personal possessions, and half of the remaining estate. The other half is divided equally among the other relatives.
  • With one child - The spouse or civil partner inherits the first £250,000 of the estate, all personal possessions, and half of the remaining estate. The child receives the remainder. 
  • More than one child - The spouse or civil partner inherits the first £250,000 of the estate, all personal possessions, and one third of the remaining estate. The other two thirds is divided equally among the children. 
• Children - If there is no surviving spouse or civil partner, the entire estate is divided equally among the children. 
• Other relatives - If there are no children, the estate is distributed among other relatives in a specific order of priority (as shown in our easy-to-follow flow chart below).    
   

The rules of intestacy – Northern Ireland 

Intestacy rules in Scotland

• Spouse or Civil partner
  • No children or grandchildren - The spouse or civil partner inherits the entire estate.   
  • With children or grandchildren - The spouse or civil partner inherits the deceased’s interest in the house, up to £473,000, furniture and household items up to £29,000, £50,000 of the balance and a third of the rest of the estate. The other two thirds is divided equally among the children (or their descendants).   
• Children - If there is no surviving spouse or civil partner, the entire estate is divided equally among the children.
• Other relatives - If there are no children or grandchildren, the estate is distributed among other relatives in a specific order of priority (as shown in our easy-to-follow flow chart below).    
   

The Rules of intestacy – Scotland

What can be done to avoid intestacy?  

Understanding the rules of intestacy is crucial for ensuring that your clients' estates are managed according to their wishes. This is especially important for couples who have lived together for quite some time. Unless they are married or in a civil partnership, there are no rights under the law of intestacy to assets which were owned by the person who died.  
 
By advising clients to have an up to date will and considering the options available for life cover; joint ownership, beneficiary nomination and placing the cover in trust, can help avoid the pitfalls of intestacy.