Wills

[chas2008]

If say a father left everything in his will to his married daughter who then died before the father, would everything when the father died then go to the husband ? or would the will need to be rewritten or is it somehow written into the will...

[smurfchops]

The father's Will should state that, if the daughter dies before the father, where the father would want the money to go. This should be sorted when the father makes the Will.

[daisya]

I would agree with Smurf over this one and perhaps say that if it's not written in the Will, then it will go to the daughter's next of kin.

[smurfchops]

Thanks daisy. I only know by experience. Always make a Will !

[chas2008]

thats what i thought, inlaws just on the point of doing some wills, just want to make sure grand daughters & great grandkids are covered..

[carrot99]

surely if the daughter had already died when the father died the money would go to the father's next of kin?

[carrot99]

...if he hadn't put that in the original will

[ubasses]

Copied from a probate site - hope it helps

The word is “lapse.” If a Testator gives something to someone (the beneficiary) in his will, what happens if the beneficiary dies before the Testator?

The general rule is that if the beneficiary is a descendant of the Testator, i.e. his children or grand children, the gift goes to the beneficiary’s descendants. The same would be true if the beneficiary is a descendant of the Testator‘s parents.

If the beneficiary is not a descendant of the Testator or of the Testator‘s parents, the gift lapses and goes to the person named as the residuary beneficiary. The residuary beneficiary is the person who the Testator names as the person who gets “all the rest and residue of my estate.”

If the residuary beneficiary dies before the Testator and is not a descendant of the Testator or of the Testator‘s parents, the gift lapses and the Testator dies intestate as to the property that would be in the residuary estate. It would then go to the Testator‘s heirs at law.

[boxtops]

They ought to put "X to receive so much, but in the event that she predeceases me, then the estate goes to Y & Z". That sort of wording makes the father's intentions clear. The husband wouldn't get it if the daughter has died.

[Barmaid]

UNLESS there is a contrary intention in the Will, if the daughter predeceases her father, the gift will fail.

Eg: Bob leaves his house to his daughter Carol. he leaves the remainder of his estate to The Home for Distressed AB Users. Carol dies before Bob. The house will "fall into residue" and will go to the Home.

Eg 2: Bob leaves the £5,000 to various charities and the whole of the rest of his estate to his daughter Carol. Carol predeceases Bob. The result is that there is a partial intestacy in respect of the residue and the estate will go to Bob's relatives under intestacy (if none, the Crown or Duchy of Lancaster on bona vacantia).

HOWEVER if Carol had left a living child and there is no contrary intention in the will, s33 of the Wills Act 1837 means that the child would inherit.