Rules of Intestacy

If someone dies without making a Will, they are said to be "intestate". When this happens, the deceased person's possessions are shared among surviving relatives according to a complex formula called the "rules of intestacy".

Many people believe that it is not necessary to make a Will if they want to leave everything to their husband or wife, because the spouse will get everything anyway. However, this is not necessarily the case. The only situations in which a surviving spouse will automatically inherit everything are:

	The estate is worth less than £125,000 where there are children or £200,000 if there are no children (this includes everything: house, money, insurance, personal possessions etc)
	There are absolutely no living blood relatives

Under the rules of intestacy, who gets what depends largely on the structure of the family, as illustrated in the flow chart below.

(Note that when anyone except a parent or grandparent would have inherited a share of the estate if they had not died first, their share will be divided between their children.)

Notes:
1. So far as intestacy is concerned, there is no such thing as a "common law wife" (or husband) — if you are not legally married, you get nothing. (However, anyone who was financially dependent on the deceased may be able to make an application for provision from the estate.)
2. So long as you were married at the date of death (even if not living together), you will get the spouse's share. However, if a divorce is finalised before the death, the marriage is over and you get nothing.
3. Except for spouses, only blood relatives inherit. If, for instance, a brother would have inherited a share but died first, his widow will not get his share (although his children will).
4. Spouse includes civil partner.

Article first published October 2002
Last Reviewed August 2006