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I will, I will, I will
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Thoughts about kicking the bucket leaving you cold? Lili Radloff gives some tips about getting your affairs in order...
Article: Lili Radloff from women24
Image: Getty
I don't like to think about dying. In fact, I try to spend as little time as possible thinking about it. And when I do, I think about the dramatic bits. You know, wondering if you'll get to say your last goodbyes…hoping you don't have too many regrets… imagining the hysterical weeping at your funeral… Disgustingly infantile, I know, but there you have it.

Which means I haven't set up a Last Will and Testament. Yet. Because if thinking about death isn't bad enough, thinking about the boring (if practical) aspects of my inevitable demise is simply the pits. Nevertheless, I've decided to do the grown-up thing and look into this will business. Here's what I found:

If you die without a legal will, what happens to your estate will depend on your marital status, whether you have children, and whether you have other surviving relatives. If you're married, your husband gets everything. If you're married with children, your estate will be shared between your husband and your children. If you have children but no husband, the kids will get everything. If you don't have a husband or children your parents will get everything. If you don't have parents, your siblings will inherit and so forth and so forth…

All this sounds pretty decent right? The only problem, of course, is that people aren't always decent. So there's nothing stopping your husband pawning your great-grandmother's ring for R200 instead of giving it to your only sister like you promised her you would since you were children.

Or imagine this: say you're not married, but you're living with someone. If you die without a will your life partner will get nothing. Even if you had been together for 50 years.

Also, who will look after your children if you die when they're still young?

And what if you've undergone a divorce and you haven't updated your will? Then your ex-husband/wife will get everything!

So how do you draw up a will?

  • Since 1 January 1954 all wills must be in writing.
  • They can be written by hand, typed or printed. So if you grab a pen and write a will in your notebook it will be perfectly legal.
  • The signature of the testator/testatrix must appear at the end of the will.
  • This signature must be made in the presence of two or more competent witnesses (people no younger than 14 who do not stand to inherit).
  • The witnesses must attest and sign the will in the presence of the testator/testatrix and of each other.
  • If the will is longer than a single page the testator/testatrix and the witnesses must sign in full on every page.

    That’s really all it is to it. You can even do it online at www.fnb.co.za. I just wrote mine out in my coffee break. So really, what’s your excuse?

    Do you have a will yet? Have you been involved in an inheritance battle? Share your comments in the box below...


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    What would the cost be if I go to a bank to draw up a legal document ?
    Teresa Vranic on 07 Oct at 11:03

     
    Hi there, I am on the fnb site at the moment but cannot find where to do the W & T online anywhere. Any suggestions?
    SheBee on 07 Oct at 11:11

     
    They've put in a link that takes you directly to the W&T section. Mine's also done. Thanks for the reminder
    Moneywise on 07 Oct at 13:45

     
    Far better to draw up your own will or see an attorney. The bank usually insists on being the executor and taking the full costs whereas if you nominate a family member as executor they can arrange to have someone who they trust to administer the estate. Have a look at freelegaldocs.com for the format of a standard will.
    JENNY on 08 Oct at 14:15

     
    sorry - freelegaldocs.co.za - estate docs
    JENNY on 08 Oct at 14:35

     
    Remember that your insurance policies are not covered by wills & testaments. You have to nominate the beneficiearies on each policy!
    Diane on 15 Oct at 11:56

     
    Hi. Can I made a will if I am married in-community -of property?
    Noms on 15 Oct at 12:22

     
    I have been told by the Attorneys handling my parents Estate that if your will does not nominate a trust to be formed for children under 18 years, their inheritance goes into a Guardians Fund run by the State. No-one (even the children themselves) can have access to the money - not for their support, medical or schooling costs etc. - until they are of age /i.e. 18. In other words your children can end up destitute after your death while the State hangs onto their money and who knows what they will get out at the end.!!
    bronwyn on 16 Oct at 09:58

     

     
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