BARCLAYS WEALTH ESTATES & TRUSTS

Section 1
Mirror will
A will which contains almost identical terms to your will.
Many spouses/partners have mirror wills in which they leave
their estate to the same beneficiaries named in both wills to
benefit on the death of the surviving spouse/partner. The
survivor can however still change the terms of their will after
the death of the first to pass away.
Wills in expectation of marriage/civil partnership
If you and your partner intend to get married soon your
will(s) can be made ‘in expectation of your marriage’ which
means it/they will be valid before and after the marriage
takes place. Marriage would otherwise cancel a will. The
same principle applies for partners intending to form a civil
partnership.
Foreign assets
Unless you specify otherwise, your will is prepared to cover
your worldwide assets and will cancel any other will (even
one made to cover assets outside of England and Wales).
However the law of the country in which the assets are
situated may limit the effectiveness of any gift under your
will. If you have assets outside England and Wales you
should seek advice in the country where those assets are
situated.
If you already have a foreign will which is to remain in force
or you are arranging for a foreign will to be prepared please
fill in the details in Section 1 of the Will Instruction Form.
The value of your estate
Please tell us the value of your estate. If you have asked
for mirror wills to be prepared, please show the combined
value of your assets. The value does not need to be exact.
An estimation of the band into which you believe the value
of your estate will fall is sufficient. When giving the value
please consider the following:
1. Property owned jointly with any other person usually
passes to the survivor on the first death, regardless of the
terms of the will. If you wish to ensure that this does not
happen and for the property to instead pass under your
will you will need to change the way in which you own
the property jointly. Otherwise assets in your sole name
only will usually pass under the terms of your will.
2. If you have a pension fund, depending on the type of
pension arrangement, death benefits may either pass into
your estate or be paid at the discretion of the pension
fund trustees direct to your dependants. You should
check with your pension provider how any benefits can
be dealt with following your death.
3. Life assurance policies, if written in trust, are payable to
the person(s) named in the policy and not under your will.
Section 3
Executors and trustees
Person or persons who will administer your estate on your
death and will ensure that your wishes are carried out. You
can choose up to four executors although two is normally
enough, or one if you wish to appoint a professional
executor. If you want to put money in a trust for children
under 18, say, the executors/trustees will be responsible
for managing this sum.
Executors must be 18 or over and should be capable of dealing
with complex issues. For this reason, we recommend a
professional executor such as Barclays. See further details on
page 4 of this brochure about the service Barclays provides.
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