Government Examination Of The Cost Of Long Term Care Demonstrates The Importance Of Leaving A Will

Health Secretary Andrew Lansley MP has highlighted the need for greater efficiency and new ways of funding social care in light of an ageing population, by announcing the creation of a new
independent Commission to examine the options for funding.

According to Finders, the international probate genealogy firm, the Health Secretary’s comments demonstrate the growing social-economic pressures resulting from the UK’s aging population. This includes an increase in cases where people do not make appropriate provisions for a will before they die. In these cases the estate will eventually handed over to the State unless an heir can be traced.

Commenting, Daniel Curran, Finders’ Managing Director, said:

“The Health Secretary’s announcement clearly demonstrates the societal pressures arising from an aging population. There is a significant problem in how individual’s estates are increasingly being swallowed up by the need to pay for their care in old age, and we welcome the Government’s move to examine in detail the current systems of funding for long-term care.

“Equally, as probate genealogists we frequently encounter estates where individuals die without making provision for a will, and this is set to increase as a result of the aging population. In cases of intestacy, where a will is not present, the task of distributing an estate can become a particularly difficult affair, especially if there is no known next of kin.

“In such cases of intestacy professional probate genealogists such as Finders provide a valuable service in identifying and tracing heirs, including working to locate people who may be beneficiaries. We are frequently instructed by solicitors, executors or administrators and trustees, or may act directly for the beneficiaries. By working with professional probate genealogists, solicitors can potentially avoid incurring unnecessary costs and diminish the risk of claims from overlooked beneficiaries, which is of course all in the client’s interest, as well as ensuring heirs are united with their rightful inheritance”.

1. To find out more about Finders please visit the Finders website at www.findersuk.com
2. Please direct any queries to Samina Ansari on 020 7067 0325 or sansari@webershandwick.com