Call us on: 01353 662 442   or email info@camouse.co.uk


Hello!

Have you left instructions on what happens to your estate?

Posted on: 18th May 2023 by: CamOuse Financial Management Limited

Many of us don’t like to think about what will happen after we’re gone, and that’s perfectly understandable. But it’s really important to overcome this psychological hurdle if our wishes are to be carried out and our loved ones get the inheritance they deserve.

According to new figures from the National Will Register, more than four in ten adults haven’t yet spoken to anyone about what should happen to their estate when they pass away.

A quarter of people said this is because they find the subject too morbid to think about, while almost one in five admitted they simply weren’t concerned about what happens to death.

Interestingly, even people aged over 55 are apparently reluctant to discuss this issue, with three in ten people in this age group not having spoken to anybody about their estate.

Similarly, almost half of those polled said their parents hadn’t discussed any instructions or details or a will, and only a third said their parents had informed them where a will could be found.

Of course, the simple reluctance to discuss or think about death is at the heart of this issue, but there will be many other factors influencing these worrying trends.

For example, many people who cohabit but aren’t married may have mistakenly assumed that if they die without a will, everything will automatically go to their partner, when in fact it would go to their closest living blood relatives.

As a recent study from the Women and Equalities Committee showed, 46 per cent of people in England and Wales wrongly believe that cohabitants living together form a common law marriage, automatically gaining rights equal to a marriage or civil partnership.

Others, meanwhile, simply assume they don’t need to have a will. The National Will Register survey found that nearly one in three people don’t believe they have enough assets to warrant making one, and one in ten felt their estate was too simple.

All this suggests that much more needs to be done to educate people about estate planning, as they can end up making costly mistakes that don’t reflect their actual wishes.

More effort to show people how to make a will could also be necessary, as a staggering one in ten said they didn’t know how to go about it.

How many people have a will?

Figures from the National Will Register show that just 44 per cent of adults in the UK have made a will.

Notably, men were found to be more likely to have a will in place than women (50 per cent of males, compared with 39 per cent of females).

Similarly, men were also more likely to be willing to discuss what happens to their estate. Some 62 per cent of men were found to have raised the issue with their loved ones, compared with just 55 per cent of women.

Two-fifths of those who haven’t yet made a will said they just hadn’t got around to making one yet.

But sadly, we can never be sure when we’ll pass away and how quickly that will might be needed.

You really shouldn’t delay getting your affairs in order, so you can be confident that your wishes will be carried out and your loved ones will be well cared for, if the unthinkable happens.

If you want any advice on making a will, estate planning and managing your wider financial affairs, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.

Our professional, regulated specialists will be happy to discuss these important issues with you, so you can be properly set up for the future.


Speak your mind

1 2 3 4 5
Opt-in?

  • I thought CamOuse were very helpful and dealt with my enquiries promptly.

    D Mowatt

    Clive Nickalls

  • I have been a client of CamOuse's for many years. My advisors have provided assistance with mortgages, financial planning, investments and most importantly my future. The team remain passionate and professional and I would recommend CamOuse without question.

    L Isbell

    Trevor Honey & Clive Nickalls

  • The staff are always happy to help.

    J Pearce

  • Lee has always given me excellent advice when choosing a new mortgage. I would highly recommend him.

    R O'Dell

    Lee Pooley

  • Everyone is very friendly, approchable, helpful and professional.

    G Parr

    Trevor Honey

  • I would like to thank Lee for all his help, he was amazing!

    Silk & Schwarz

    Lee Pooley

  • Lee was recommended to us by 2 of his existing clients, colleagues and friends of ours and I'm glad they did so! He made the whole process much simpler then we were expecting.

    Burgess & Bedford

    Lee Pooley

  • Lee has helped us on several occassions and we always appreciate and value his time and efforts.

    I & A Murphy

    Lee Pooley

  • I really appreciate the prompt, friendly, efficient service.

    V Hardy

    Clive Nickalls

  • Very pleased with the service provided and happy to recommend to my customers and friends and family.

    M Chadburn

    Clive Nickalls

  • I would like to express my thanks for the excellent service I have received and a special thank you to Hannah for keeping me updated and dealing with my queries in a very efficient and professional manner.

    T Long

    Matthew Theobald

  • Thank you (and Eve) so much for all your help and support towards our remortgage. We really appreciated your expertise.

    Cant & Robbins

    Lee Pooley

  • I would just like to thank you all on behalf of myself and Jordan. You, Eve and Max have been faultless and we couldn’t be more appreciative for all your help!

    C Baldwin

    Lee Pooley

  • Lee has provided me with mortgages and appropriate insurance for both my home and lease properties. He is professional and works to get policies in place in an extremely quick time frame. I would certainly recommend Lee and CamOuse to anyone and I personally will continue to use their service.

    G Habbin

    Lee Pooley

  • I have been a client of CamOuse Financial Management Ltd for many years and have always found their services to be of the highest quality.

    N Parker

    Jo Kurz

  • Amazing company, very friendly, professional, and always on hand to give sound advice. My family has been utilising their expertise for many years and have never been let down.

    S Bradley

    Jo Kurz

  • Sound financial advice and planning. Responsive and friendly service.

    B O'Connor

    Jo Kurz

  • The whole team at CamOuse are friendly, professional and always look after your best interests. Thanks for your help!

    G Hall

    Lee Pooley

  • We've only been with CamOuse just over a year but would highly recommend them. We deal with Matthew who is an excellent adviser, always very responsive to questions and goes the extra mile to help.

    P Carter

    Matthew Theobald

  • I was so pleased and relieved to find this company.  Particularly pleasing is their communication - it's jargon-free, concise and clear.  We've been very happy with advice given thus far, and also their responsiveness whenever we've had any queries.

    A Cant

    Jo Kurz

  • We used Lee at Camouse to arrange our mortgage and can highly recommend him to provide an honest and professional service in this area. We will certainly return to Lee for remortgage advice in the future.

    A Attewell

    Lee Pooley

  • Would like to extend our thanks to you and your team for a fantastic customer service as always.

    E & R Mendoza

    Lee Pooley

  • We paid a small fee to Camouse for whole of market mortgage broker services. As first time buyers, Lee and Eve were able to guide us through the process, find us a deal and sort out the applications in a really helpful friendly and efficient way. We were very satisfied and would recommend CamOuse to others for this service.

    L Humphrey

    Lee Pooley

  • I was extremely pleased with the quality of the service I received when arranging a mortgage as part of a house sale and purchase through CamOuse. Lee and Eve were very easy to contact and always quick to respond. I would definitely recommend their mortgage arrangement services.

    G Dewdney

    Lee Pooley

  • Jo has been extremely helpful and very patient and I will be recommending her highly to other family and friends of mine. I do sincerely appreciate the way Jo handled my issues and also the excellent and very professional way she conducted business. She is an absolute asset to CamOuse.

    C Tate

    Jo Kurz

  • CamOuse have been our go-to financial advisers since 2008 and have assisted with numerous mortgages, remortgages, insurances, and general financial advice. Lee Pooley and Eve Nowakowska have been invaluable during this time. We've built up an excellent relationship with both and trust them completely to do what's in our best interests. Both are an absolute pleasure to work with and I cannot recommend them, and by extension CamOuse, enough!

    I Murphy

    Lee Pooley

  • We used the services of CamOuse to help in buying our first home and setting up our mortgage and we were extremely happy with all the advice and help we got. We spoke to Lee mostly, who was really great! Very insightful, very friendly and helpful, very patient and all-round great service. Would happily seek their help again. Many thanks Lee!

    C Bolas

    Lee Pooley

  • We have been taking mortgage advice from CamOuse for over 20 years and are always impressed by their friendliness and professionalism.

    N Amery

    Lee Pooley

  • Thank you to Matthew and Julie for making a huge difference in my life when I thought I was so stuck and felt there was never going to be a way to move forward.

    L Smith

    Matthew Theobald


View our Privacy Notice.

Camouse Financial Management Limited is an Appointed Representative of Quilter Financial Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

None of the information contained in this website should be considered as personal recommendation and is for information only. Should you wish to make a financial transaction we recommend that you take personal financial advice after a thorough review of your personal and financial circumstances.

The information contained within the website is subject to the UK regulatory regime and is therefore primarily targets at customers in the UK.

Registered address: Unit 111, Lancaster Way Business Park, Ely, Cambridgeshire, CB6 3NX

Registered in England and Wales. Registered No: 05662116.


Understanding the true cost to your business

Pension arrangements must be available for all employees. There are three categories of employee:

Eligible

Aged between 22 and State Pension Age (SPA) with qualifying earnings over the Auto Enrolment earnings trigger

Non-eligible

Aged between 16 – 74 with qualifying earnings between lower threshold and the Auto Enrolment earnings trigger
 
Aged between 16 -21 or SPA – 74 with qualifying earnings over Auto Enrolment earnings threshold

Entitled

Aged between 16 -74 with earnings below the qualifying earnings lower threshold

Important Notes

  1. Eligible jobholders must be auto-enrolled
  2. Non-eligible jobholders are allowed to be auto-enrolled if they want to
  3. Entitled workers are entitled to join a pension scheme, but the employer doesn't have to contribute

Qualifying Earnings lower threshold

£5,772

Qualifying Earnings upper threshold

£41,865

Automatic Enrolment earnings trigger

£10,000

Minimum contribution level options:

8% of Qualifying Earnings of which

3% is employer's (starting at 1%)

9% of Basic Salary of which

4% is employer's (starting at 2%)

8% of Basic Salary of which

3% is employer's (starting at 1%)

(Where basic salary is at least 85% of total earnings)

7% of gross earnings of which

3% is employer's (starting at 1%)

Pay reference period

Essentially the frequency that the jobholder is paid e.g. monthly, weekly etc. but with reference to the tax month, week etc. therefore it may not be the same as the payroll period.

Deduction and payment of contributions

It is the employer who is responsible to calculate, deduct and pay all contributions to the AE scheme. NOTE – the first and last contributions are likely to be for less than a full pay reference period and should be adjusted accordingly.

Payroll services

It can be seen that it is very important that the payroll system synchronises with the AE scheme otherwise the employer will not be carrying out all requirements and then penalties will be incurred.

Staging date

Based on the employer’s payroll size as at 1 April 2012 and can be found at www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/employers using your PAYE reference. The Qualifying Workplace Pension Scheme must be registered with The Pensions Regulator within 4 months of the staging date.

Compliance and communication

Postponement

Auto-Enrolment can be postponed for up to 3 months:

  • For current eligible employees
  • For workers that meet the criteria in the future for the first time e.g. avoid joining temporary or lower paid workers

Opt-Outs

All eligible employees must be auto-enrolled, but can, with the correct notification, opt-out within one month of joining the scheme and be treated as never having joined. They can opt back in and will automatically be auto-enrolled every 3 years in any case!

Communication

There is a wide range of information that must be provided to all employees at certain times, such as:

  • The date auto-enrolment took place for eligible jobholders
  • That non-eligible jobholders have the statutory right to opt in
  • Entitled workers have the right to request the employer to enrol them into a pension scheme

Salary sacrifice

Contributions can be paid by effectively reducing salary, which saves on NI contributions, but employee must choose to do this – they cannot be forced, so a contractual variation will need to be implemented.

Default investment fund

Investment Options

All eligible employees will be automatically invested into a default investment fund, which is a balanced risk fund that is “life styled” to account for the employees approach to retirement. They also have the option to invest in a wide range of funds of their choosing.