Half of Australians don’t have a will

MORE than half of Australians do not have a will and of those, almost 40 per cent have no idea what happens to their assets in the event they pass away without a will, according to research commissioned by Maurice Blackburn Lawyers.

The research, which surveyed more than 1,200 respondents nationally aged 18 years and over, found that 40 per cent of those without a will had thought about making one but were yet to do so, while 30 per cent felt they didn’t have anything of value to leave.

Nearly 30 per cent felt they were too young to need a will and 16 per cent of respondents didn’t have a will because they didn’t want to think about dying.

Maurice Blackburn national head of wills and estates law Andrew Simpson said the results were concerning because they showed a significant lack of awareness among Australians about why a will was important and what happened if you pass away without a will.

“This research reflects what we hear each day – that a significant proportion of the Australian adult population don’t have a will, that those who don’t have a will are highly misinformed about why a will is important and that many people are in the dark about what actually happens if you pass away without a will.

“It also confirms concerns we commonly hear that preparing a will could be a difficult and time-consuming process, when in reality that is not the case, irrespective of your circumstances.”

He said people believing they did not have anything of value to leave their loved ones was a common misconception, as it did not consider the range of assets that may need to be dealt with when a person passed away.

“This can include things like your pets and even your digital assets, but the two biggest issues that are forgotten about are superannuation and life insurance – many people don’t turn their mind to how their superannuation and life insurance are to be dealt with after death.

“Dealing with your superannuation and life insurance is an essential part of the estate planning process and goes hand in hand with the preparation of a will.”