How to choose your executors
· WillWay
Choosing your executors is one of the most important decisions in your will, and one of the most personal. These are the people who will carry out your wishes after you've died, at a time when your family may be grieving. It's worth taking a little time over.
What an executor does
In broad terms, your executors look after your estate from the moment of your death until everything has been passed on. That usually means finding your will, working out what you owned and owed, dealing with banks and other organisations, paying any debts and taxes from the estate, and then sharing what's left as your will directs.
It can take months, sometimes longer. Executors can get professional help with the paperwork, usually paid for from the estate, but the responsibility stays with them.
Who people usually choose
Most people choose someone they trust and who knows them well: a husband, wife or partner, an adult son or daughter, a sibling or a close friend. An executor must be an adult, and it's perfectly normal for an executor to also be someone who inherits from you.
Good qualities to look for:
- Someone organised and reliable, who will see things through.
- Someone you trust to be fair, especially if several people are inheriting.
- Someone likely to be around and able to act when the time comes.
- Someone who gets on reasonably well with the other people involved.
How many to name
Many people name two executors, so the work and the decisions can be shared. You can name more, but in England and Wales no more than four can apply to deal with an estate at the same time. Naming a replacement executor, in case one of your first choices has died or can't act, helps avoid gaps.
Ask them first
It's a real responsibility, so ask the people you have in mind before you name them, and let them know roughly what it involves. Most people are glad to be asked. An executor can decline when the time comes, which is another reason to name a replacement.
Tell them where your will is
Once your will is signed and witnessed, make sure your executors know where it's kept. They can't act on a will they can't find.
When it may be more complicated
If you have a business, property abroad, a family situation that may be disputed, or you're thinking about professional executors such as a bank or solicitor, a private-client solicitor is the better place to start.
Choosing executors with WillWay
The WillWay questionnaire asks you to name your executors and any replacements, with their full names and addresses, and explains each question in plain English as you go. You start with a short eligibility check and only pay at the end.
WillWay is not a law firm and does not give legal advice. This article is general information, not advice about your own circumstances.