MINISTRY OF JUSTICE
News Release (012/09) issued by COI News Distribution Service. 30
January 2009
From Sunday, the
financial entitlement for someone whose spouse or civil partner
has died without leaving a Will has been doubled, with the
potential to reach £450,000. This comes in parallel with the
biggest overhaul of the Coroners system in 100 years, as the
Coroners and Justice Bill takes forward the Government's
commitment to providing more and better support to the bereaved.
Justice Minister Bridget Prentice said:
"The death of a loved one is an extremely distressing time,
and sees people at their most vulnerable. I want to see real
improvement in the support and services offered to the recently
bereaved, and this will result in the biggest shake-up of the
coronial system in 100 years.
"The Coroners and Justice Bill, currently going through
Parliament, sets out my plans for the first-ever 'Charter for
the Bereaved'. Families will get a right to complain or
appeal to a new Chief Coroner on a range of issues, including if
they think there should be a post-mortem examination or if they
are unhappy with the verdict of the inquest.
"The Charter will also make sure that families are kept
informed, answer any questions they may have about coronial
procedures and take account of individual wishes, where possible,
including personal preferences and religious requirements.
"Alongside this, from today, a person whose spouse or civil
partner has died without leaving a will is now entitled to
significantly increased financial support - another key part of
our plans to make this difficult time a little easier.
"Of course we should all make a will, but in the situation
where there isn't one we have greatly increased financial support."
At present, a spouse or civil partner with children automatically
gets £125,000 from the estate of someone who has died without
leaving a will. Where someone leaves not only a spouse or civil
partner but also parents or siblings, but no children, they get
£200,000. From 1 February 2009 the amounts will increase to
£250,000 and £450,000 respectively.
The broader reforms to the coroner system will see the
appointment of a judge to the new post of Chief Coroner for
England and Wales; the introduction of new national standards for
coroners' investigations; new powers to transfer
investigations from one area to another in order to prevent
backlogs for both military and non-military inquests; and measures
that ensure that coroners' verdicts are accurate and based on
all available evidence, even if the evidence cannot be made public.
Notes to Editors
1. The statutory legacy is the amount payable to a surviving
spouse or civil partner from the estate of his or her spouse or
civil partner dying intestate, that is without leaving a valid
will. As from 1st February, where the deceased leaves a surviving
spouse or civil partner and children the statutory legacy will
increase from £125,000 to £250,000 and from £200,000 to £450,000
where the deceased leaves a surviving spouse or civil partner and
parents or siblings but no children. The statutory legacy is
payable to the surviving spouse or civil partner only. The
intestacy rules are a default regime and people can opt out of
them by making a will.
2. The changes to the statutory legacy are made by way of
statutory instrument pursuant to section 1 of the Family Provision
Act 1966. The Family Provision (Intestate Succession) Order 2009
sets out the new increases to the levels of the statutory legacy.
3. The Coroners and Justice Bill provides for a new Charter for
Bereaved People. The charter will be statutory guidance and bring
together many of the services bereaved people will receive from
coroners in a reformed system. This is available at: http://www.justice.gov.uk/news/newsrelease140109b.htm
4. Further details about the changes to the statutory legacy are
available in the Ministry of Justice's post-consultation
report: Administration of Estates - Review of the Statutory Legacy
(CP(R) 11/05), which was published in August 2008. The
post-consultation report is available on the Ministry of
Justice's website at: http://www.justice.gov.uk
5. There is more information on intestacy and what happens when
someone dies without making a will on the DirectGov website at http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentcitizensandrights/Death/Preparation/DG_10029802
and the Community Legal Advice website at http://www.communitylegaladvice.org.uk/en/legalhelp/leaflet10_9.jsp
ENDS
News Release
http://www.justice.gov.uk