Death without a will

[tobeloy]

What would happen if either of my parents died and they havent made a will, they are divorced and me and my siblings see them both nearly every day?

Does the eldest child usually take control of the deceased persons estate?

Any help appreciated

[vehelpfulguy]

All sorts of things can happen to their house and money if they have not made a will, some which may be against  their wishes.

GET THEM TO MAKE A WILL. It is easy and many solicitors now offer inexpensive wills.

Dying without a will is called "Dying intestate", for more search on "dying intestate" in google.   

[WendyS]

Yes, making a Will is essentiall, especially in situations where marriages have broken down and there could be some abiguity about who might benefit.  If your parents are working, they may also belong to company or occupational pension schemes and they should also make declarations to the pension schemes as to who they wish to be beneficiaries in the event of death.  This will prevent the money from being included in their estate for tax purposes and enable the pension fund trustees to pay out the money quickly and without dispute.Their company pension advisor will be able to inform them of the necessary procedure to do this.

[bracknell]

everything will go to the treasury - you don't want that , try to persuade them to make wills.

[ladytee]

well my mother died but she was still married to my father however she didn't have a will. we had to make a list of all her heirs (husband and children) then filed it in public records. her estate is no own by her husband and kids but my father owns more being that he is her spouse. now the bad part of it all is that nothing can be done to her estate without everyones signature which is hard if you cann't all agree. it has torn my family apart so PLEASE tell your parents to make a will soon.