Wills for Blended Families: A Complete Guide

Michael thought he'd done everything right. After remarrying at 52, he updated his will to leave everything to his new wife Emma, with a verbal agreement that she'd ensure his two daughters from his first marriage would eventually inherit.

When Michael died unexpectedly three years later, Emma kept her promise—for about eighteen months.

Then she remarried, and Michael's daughters discovered that her new will left everything to her own children from her previous marriage. Michael's daughters, who'd expected to inherit their father's £380,000 estate, received nothing.

This scenario plays out across the UK every day. According to Census 2021 data, 781,000 stepfamilies are raising 1.1 million dependent children in England and Wales—that's one in every eleven children.

When you remarry or form a stepfamily, standard wills that work for traditional families can accidentally disinherit your own children. This guide explains how UK inheritance law treats blended families, why verbal agreements don't work, and exactly how to structure your will to protect everyone you love. Learn how fair estate distribution principles, asset protection strategies, and proper guardian appointments apply specifically to blended family situations.

Why Blended Families Need Special Will Planning

Stepchildren have zero automatic inheritance rights under UK intestacy rules.

If you die without a will and you have a spouse and children from a previous relationship, intestacy rules distribute your estate to your biological or legally adopted children—but not your stepchildren. Your stepchildren receive nothing, regardless of how long you raised them or how close your relationship.

Even if you have a will, the phrase "my children" doesn't automatically include stepchildren unless you explicitly name them.

Blended families are increasingly common. 32% of marriages in England and Wales involve at least one person remarrying, and research shows that inheritance planning often doesn't keep pace. Research suggests that 17% of stepparents exclude stepchildren entirely from wills, while 32% don't treat biological children and stepchildren equally.

Here's the emotional tension most people face: you want to provide for your new spouse AND protect your children from previous relationships. You love your new partner and want them secure, but you also feel a deep obligation to ensure your own children eventually inherit what you've built. Understanding lifetime gifting strategies and comprehensive inheritance tax planning helps blended families protect wealth for all children.

Without proper planning, your own biological children can end up with nothing. Or your new spouse can be left financially vulnerable. Standard wills create impossible choices—but specialized blended family planning solves both problems.

How UK Inheritance Law Treats Stepchildren

Understanding the legal position of stepchildren is essential for making informed will decisions.

Under UK intestacy rules, stepchildren have no automatic right to inherit unless they've been legally adopted. If you die without a will as a remarried person with children from a previous marriage, here's exactly what happens:

Your surviving spouse inherits the first £322,000 of your estate (as of 2024) plus half of any remaining amount. Your biological or legally adopted children share the other half of the remainder. Your stepchildren receive nothing.

Example: James dies without a will, leaving a £500,000 estate. His wife Sarah inherits £322,000 plus half the remaining £178,000 (£89,000) for a total of £411,000. His two daughters from his first marriage share the other £89,000—£44,500 each. His stepson from his marriage to Sarah receives nothing.

There's one important exception: formal legal adoption. If you've legally adopted your stepchildren through the courts, they have identical inheritance rights to biological children. But this is relatively rare—most stepparents never formally adopt their stepchildren even in long-term relationships.

Can Stepchildren Make Inheritance Claims?

Yes, but only under specific circumstances.

The Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 allows stepchildren to challenge a will or intestacy distribution if they can prove:

They were "treated as a child of the family" by the deceased
The deceased assumed parental responsibilities toward them
The will or intestacy rules failed to make reasonable financial provision for their maintenance

Even adult stepchildren who never lived with the stepparent can make claims if they can demonstrate this family relationship. Claims must typically be brought within six months of the grant of probate, though courts can grant extensions.

This creates planning complexity: excluding stepchildren entirely might invite legal challenges, but including them without considering your biological children's needs can lead to accidental disinheritance. This is precisely why fair estate distribution strategies become critical for blended families balancing competing interests.

The lesson: prevention through proper will planning is far better than litigation after death.

The Hidden Danger of Mirror Wills for Blended Families

Mirror wills are the most common—and most dangerous—mistake blended families make.

Mirror wills are matching wills where each spouse leaves everything to the other, with children named as backup beneficiaries if both parents die. They work beautifully for first marriages where all children are shared.

For blended families, they're a disaster waiting to happen. Instead, life interest trusts and other protective structures ensure both your new spouse's security and your children's inheritance are genuinely protected.

Here's why: the surviving spouse can legally change their will at any time after the first spouse dies. There is zero legal obligation to honor the original plan, regardless of what was promised.

Sarah and David made mirror wills, each leaving everything to the other, with their combined children (his two, her one) as equal beneficiaries. They verbally agreed that whoever survived would maintain this equal distribution.

David died first at 58. Sarah inherited everything: the £450,000 house, his pension savings, their joint investments.

For two years, Sarah kept the arrangement. Then her own health deteriorated, and she needed her daughter nearby for care. She changed her will to leave the house to her daughter (who'd been providing daily support), with David's children receiving £20,000 each from remaining savings.

When Sarah died, David's daughters received £10,000 each instead of the £150,000 share (one-third of the estate) their father intended. Sarah hadn't acted maliciously—circumstances genuinely changed. But David's daughters lost their inheritance.

Why Verbal Agreements Are Legally Worthless

"I'll make sure your kids are looked after" means nothing in law.

This isn't about trust or character. It's about what can happen over 10, 15, or 20+ years after the first spouse dies:

The surviving spouse might remarry (automatically revoking their will)
Financial circumstances might change (care home fees, business losses, supporting adult children)
Relationships might shift (becoming closer to their own children, estrangement from stepchildren)
Family pressure might mount (their own children lobbying for inheritance)
Health issues might require estate restructuring

People making promises in their 50s can't anticipate what life will look like in their 70s or 80s. Circumstances change. Family dynamics evolve. Legal protections matter.

Life Interest Trusts: The Solution for Most Blended Families

Life interest trusts solve the core dilemma blended families face: how to provide security for your spouse while protecting your children's inheritance.

A life interest trust (also called a right to reside trust) allows your spouse to benefit from assets during their lifetime without owning them outright. When your spouse dies or remarries, the assets pass to your children—guaranteed.

Here's how it works in practice:

You die and your share of assets (typically your half of the family home) goes into a trust. Your spouse becomes the "life tenant" with the right to live in the property rent-free for their entire life. They can't sell the property without the trustees' consent (usually your children or a professional trustee). They can't leave the property to someone else in their will. When your spouse dies or remarries, your children inherit your share of the property as the "remainder beneficiaries."

Example: You and your new wife own a £400,000 house jointly. You die, and your half (£200,000) goes into a life interest trust. Your wife continues living in the entire house for the rest of her life. When she dies, your children from your first marriage inherit your £200,000 share. Your wife's half passes according to her own will.

Benefits for Everyone

Your spouse gets complete security: guaranteed housing for life, no risk of eviction, the comfort of remaining in the family home. If the trust includes investment portfolios rather than property, your spouse can receive income while capital remains protected for your children.

Your children get iron-clad protection: their inheritance is legally secured from day one, regardless of what happens in your spouse's life—remarriage, bankruptcy, changing relationships, or care home fees.

The trust structure protects against scenarios that destroy inheritance in mirror will arrangements:

If your spouse remarries, your children's inheritance remains untouched
If your spouse needs care home funding, the trust assets can't be seized (though this is complex—seek specialist advice)
If your spouse faces bankruptcy or creditor claims, trust assets remain protected
If family relationships deteriorate, your spouse can't disinherit your children

Important Limitations

Life interest trusts require professional legal setup. You need a solicitor to draft the trust deed—online wills can reference the intention to create a trust, but the trust itself needs expert drafting.

Typical solicitor costs for wills with life interest trusts range from £500 to £1,500, depending on estate complexity.

Trustees must be appointed (typically your adult children or professional trustees) who have legal obligations to manage the trust properly and balance the needs of the life tenant and remainder beneficiaries.

Alternative Will Structures for Blended Families

Life interest trusts aren't the only option. Consider these alternatives based on your specific circumstances.

Mutual Wills

Mutual wills are legally binding agreements where both spouses contract not to change their wills after the first death. Unlike mirror wills, mutual wills can't be altered by the survivor.

They provide certainty but at a significant cost: complete inflexibility. Even if circumstances genuinely change—the surviving spouse needs care, children's situations evolve, or financial realities shift—the will can't adapt.

Mutual wills require formal legal agreements and typically cost £800 to £2,000+. They're rarely recommended due to their rigidity.

Property Ownership Changes

Changing how you own property creates natural protection without complex trusts.

If you own your home as "joint tenants," it automatically passes to the surviving owner regardless of your will. Converting to "tenants in common" means each person owns a distinct share that passes according to their will.

Combined with a clearly drafted will, tenants in common ownership allows you to leave your share directly to your children (or into a life interest trust) while your spouse retains their own share.

This change requires a simple legal document (a "severance of joint tenancy") that costs £50 to £150 through a solicitor.

Direct Bequests to Children

For assets other than the family home, you can make direct bequests to your children immediately.

Example: "I leave £50,000 to each of my two children from my first marriage, and the remainder of my estate to my wife."

This provides immediate certainty for children while ensuring your spouse receives the bulk of the estate for security during their lifetime. It works well when children are financially independent adults who don't need the family home but deserve recognition.

Life insurance policies and pension death benefits can name children as direct beneficiaries, bypassing the will entirely and providing guaranteed inheritances.

Combination Approaches

Many blended families use layered strategies:

Life interest trust for the family home (spouse security + children's protection)
Direct bequests of specific amounts to children from previous marriage
Remainder of estate to spouse
Meaningful gifts to stepchildren if appropriate
Life insurance naming children as beneficiaries

Structure	Protects Spouse	Protects Children	Flexible	Typical Cost
Mirror Wills	✓	✗	✓	£100-£300
Life Interest Trust	✓	✓	Limited	£500-£1,500
Mutual Wills	✓	✓	✗	£800-£2,000
Direct Split	Partial	✓	✓	£100-£400

How to Treat Stepchildren in Your Will

This is the question many people find most difficult: do I have to leave anything to my stepchildren?

The legal answer is straightforward: you have no legal obligation to include stepchildren in your will unless you've formally adopted them. However, stepchildren who can prove you "treated them as a child of the family" may challenge your will under the Inheritance Act 1975.

The personal answer is far more complex.

Consider these factors when making your decision:

Length and depth of relationship: Did you raise your stepchild from age five, or meet them as adults? The longer and more parental the relationship, the stronger the case for inclusion—both morally and legally.

Age when you became stepparent: Raising a stepchild through their formative years creates different expectations than meeting them as independent adults.

Their other support: Is their biological parent alive and financially stable? Do they have inheritance expectations from that side of the family?

Your spouse's financial position: Can your spouse adequately provide for their own children from their assets?

Quality of your relationship: Have you developed a genuine parent-child bond, or remained more distant despite the legal connection?

The Options

Equal treatment: Some stepparents treat biological children and stepchildren identically, particularly when they've raised stepchildren from young ages or all children have similar needs.

Proportional approach: Others leave larger shares to biological children with meaningful but smaller amounts to stepchildren—acknowledging the relationship while honoring obligations to biological children.

Specific gifts: Leaving stepchildren particular items with sentimental value (rather than percentage shares) can honor the relationship without significantly affecting biological children's inheritance.

Exclusion with explanation: Some people exclude stepchildren entirely, particularly when the relationship began late or the stepchildren have substantial other resources. Consider including a letter of wishes explaining your reasoning.

Managing Legal Risk

Completely excluding stepchildren you raised creates higher risk of Inheritance Act claims. If you met your stepchild as an adult and never assumed parental responsibilities, exclusion carries less risk.

If excluding stepchildren or treating them differently from biological children, document your reasoning in a letter of wishes (not part of the will itself) to help executors and surviving family understand your decision-making.

The most important step: discuss your intentions with your spouse and potentially all children. Surprises after death create far more family conflict than difficult conversations during life.

Protecting Your Children from Your Previous Marriage

If you're remarried with children from previous relationships, protecting their inheritance requires active planning.

The core risk is simple: if you leave everything to your new spouse with a verbal understanding they'll provide for your children, your children may inherit nothing. Here's exactly how to prevent that.

Strategy 1: Life Interest Trust in the Family Home

As discussed earlier, a life interest trust in your share of the property provides your spouse with housing security while guaranteeing your children eventually inherit your share.

This is the gold standard for blended family protection when the family home represents most of your estate value.

Strategy 2: Life Insurance with Children as Direct Beneficiaries

Life insurance bypasses your will entirely. Name your children as direct beneficiaries on the policy, and the death benefit pays directly to them regardless of your will's contents.

Example: Take out a £200,000 life insurance policy naming your two children as beneficiaries. When you die, they each receive £100,000 directly. Your will can then leave other assets to your spouse without guilt—your children have already received their inheritance.

This strategy is particularly effective for younger parents in blended families who have modest assets but significant earning potential.

Strategy 3: Pension Death Benefits Nomination

Most pensions allow you to nominate beneficiaries for death benefits. Complete the nomination form naming your children (and your spouse if appropriate in whatever proportion you choose).

Pension death benefits often pass outside your estate, meaning your will doesn't control them. Check your specific pension scheme rules.

Strategy 4: Property Ownership Structure

Change ownership from "joint tenants" to "tenants in common" so your share passes according to your will rather than automatically to your spouse.

This simple change costs £50 to £150 and creates the legal foundation for protecting your children's inheritance in the property.

Strategy 5: Specific Bequests Before Residuary Estate

Structure your will with specific amounts to children before the remainder goes to your spouse:

"I leave £50,000 to each of my two daughters. I leave the remainder of my estate to my wife."

This guarantees your children receive defined amounts while your spouse receives everything else.

Strategy 6: Regular Will Reviews

Review your will every two to three years or after major life events: birth, death, marriage, divorce, significant asset changes, or relationship changes.

Blended families evolve more than traditional families—adult children's circumstances change, stepfamily dynamics shift, new grandchildren arrive. Your will must keep pace.

Protection Checklist

Before remarrying or shortly after your wedding:

Change property ownership to tenants in common
Update pension beneficiary nominations to include children
Review life insurance beneficiaries
Consider whether life interest trust is appropriate
Name all children explicitly in your will (biological and step if including them)
Make a new will immediately after marriage (see next section)
Discuss your inheritance plans with your spouse

Warning About Automatic Revocation

This is critical: remarriage automatically revokes any will made before the marriage. If you die before making a new will after your wedding, intestacy rules apply regardless of what your previous will said.

Make this a priority.

How Remarriage Affects Your Existing Will

Here's the critical legal rule that catches thousands of people every year: getting married automatically cancels any will you made before the marriage.

This is UK law under the Wills Act 1837, and it remains in force today. Unless your will explicitly states it was made "in contemplation of marriage to [named person]," marriage revokes it completely.

Example: James made a will at age 45 leaving his £500,000 estate equally to his two daughters from his first marriage. He remarried at 52 without updating his will. When he died unexpectedly two years later, his will was invalid.

Under intestacy rules, his new wife inherited £322,000 plus half the remainder (£89,000) for a total of £411,000. His daughters split the other £89,000—receiving £44,500 each instead of the £250,000 each he'd intended.

What Happens Under Intestacy

If you die without a valid will after remarriage, intestacy rules determine distribution:

Your spouse inherits the first £322,000 of your estate (as of 2024)
Your spouse inherits half of any amount above £322,000
Your biological or adopted children share the other half of amounts above £322,000
Your stepchildren receive nothing (unless legally adopted)

For estates under £322,000, your spouse inherits everything and your children receive nothing.

The "In Contemplation of Marriage" Exception

You can make a will before your wedding that survives the marriage if it explicitly states: "This will is made in contemplation of my marriage to [full name of fiancé] and I intend that it shall not be revoked by that marriage."

This clause must name the specific person you're marrying. A generic statement about "future marriage" doesn't work.

Most people don't use this option because they're not thinking about wills in the excitement of wedding planning. But it's the legally proper way to ensure continuity.

Divorce vs. Remarriage

These trigger different rules:

Divorce doesn't revoke your will but removes your ex-spouse as a beneficiary. They're treated as if they died before you. The rest of your will remains valid.

Remarriage completely revokes your entire will. Everything starts from scratch.

Your Action Timeline

Before engagement: Update your will if it's been more than three years since your last review or if your circumstances have changed significantly.

After engagement: Have preliminary estate planning conversations with your fiancé about protecting children from previous relationships while providing for each other.

Before the wedding: Ideally, make a comprehensive new will (either with "in contemplation of marriage" clause or a joint plan to make new wills immediately after the wedding).

After the wedding: If you didn't make a new will beforehand, do it within the first month of marriage. This is as important as changing your name or updating emergency contacts.

Don't leave this to chance. The combination of remarriage revoking wills and intestacy rules favoring spouses over children creates exactly the scenario that accidentally disinherit children from previous marriages.

Having "The Conversation": Discussing Your Will Plans

Talking to your spouse and children about blended family inheritance is genuinely difficult. Do it anyway.

Your will plans affect everyone you love. Surprises after your death create far more family conflict, resentment, and legal challenges than difficult conversations during your life.

When to Have the Conversation

Before making your will, not after. You want input and concerns addressed during the planning stage, not resentment and suspicion after the document is signed.

If you're engaged, have this conversation before the wedding. If you're already married and haven't discussed it, have it now.

Who Should Be Involved

Your spouse (essential): Any will plan that affects them requires their participation. You're building a life together—estate planning is part of that.

Your children (strongly recommended): Adult children from previous relationships deserve to know your intentions, particularly if you're balancing their inheritance with your new spouse's security.

Your stepchildren (situational): If you're including them meaningfully in your will or if family dynamics require transparency, include them. If you're not close or they're young, this might be between you and your spouse.

How to Structure the Conversation

1. State your values

"I want to provide for you and ensure you're secure, and I also want to protect my children's inheritance from my first marriage. Both matter to me."

2. Explain the legal reality

"I've learned that if I leave everything to you with the understanding you'll provide for my children, there's no legal protection for them. Circumstances can change over 20 years—remarriage, financial needs, family pressures—and I need legal structures to protect everyone."

3. Present your proposed plan

"Here's what I'm thinking: a life interest trust that gives you the right to live in our home for your entire life, with my share eventually passing to my children. You'll never face eviction or housing insecurity, and my children's inheritance is legally protected."

4. Listen to concerns

Give your spouse space to express their fears. Common concerns include feeling distrusted, worrying about financial security, or feeling treated as temporary rather than equal partner.

Give your children space to express their concerns about being disinherited or treated as less important than your new relationship.

5. Adjust based on feedback

Be willing to modify your plan. Perhaps your spouse needs life insurance benefiting them to feel secure. Perhaps your children need reassurance about specific family items with sentimental value.

Addressing Common Objections

From your spouse: "Don't you trust me?"

"This isn't about trust—it's about what can happen over 20 or 30 years. You might remarry. You might face financial pressure I can't anticipate. You might develop different relationships with all our children. Legal protection serves everyone, including you."

From your spouse: "You're prioritizing your kids over me."

"I'm not. A life interest trust means you're completely protected—guaranteed housing for life. My children's inheritance is secured for the future, after you no longer need those assets. This protects both of you."

From your children: "Are you leaving everything to her?"

"No. Here's exactly what I'm planning, and why. I want your stepmother to be secure and comfortable, and I want you to ultimately inherit what I've built. Let me explain how I'm achieving both."

Put It in Writing

After the conversation, create a letter of wishes (stored with your will but not legally part of it) explaining your reasoning, your values, and your hopes for how your family will support each other after you're gone.

This letter helps executors understand your intentions and helps family members process your decisions with the context of your thinking.

Consider Professional Facilitation

For complex situations or families with significant tension, consider having this conversation with a solicitor present. A neutral professional can explain legal realities, answer questions, and help keep emotions from overwhelming the discussion.

When to Use a Solicitor vs. Online Will for Blended Families

Not all blended family situations require expensive solicitor involvement. But some genuinely do.

Here's exactly how to decide.

Straightforward Situations Suitable for Online Wills

WUHLD and similar online services work well when:

Your children from previous relationships are financially independent adults
Your estate is relatively modest (under £500,000)
Your assets are straightforward (family home, savings, personal possessions—no business interests or complex investments)
You and your spouse have clear agreement about who inherits what
You're making specific bequests to children with the remainder to your spouse (no trusts required)
All children are explicitly named as beneficiaries
All beneficiaries live in the UK

Example scenario suitable for online will: You're 54, remarried with two adult children from your first marriage (ages 28 and 31) and one stepchild (age 26). Your estate consists of your family home (owned as tenants in common), £80,000 in savings, and personal belongings. You want to leave your share of the home and half your savings to your wife, with the other half of savings split between your two children. Your stepchild will inherit from their other parent.

This is straightforward enough for an online will. Total cost: £49.99 with WUHLD.

Complex Situations Requiring a Solicitor

Consult a solicitor when:

You want to establish a life interest trust or property trust (requires professional trust deed drafting)
Your estate exceeds £1 million or includes business ownership, commercial property, or complex investment structures
You have international assets or beneficiaries living abroad
You have minor children requiring ongoing guardianship provisions combined with blended family inheritance planning
You have disabled beneficiaries who need specialized trusts to protect benefits eligibility
You anticipate family conflict or inheritance disputes
You want legally binding mutual wills with contractual obligations
Your situation involves potential inheritance tax planning beyond basic nil-rate band provisions

Example scenario requiring solicitor: You're 56, remarried with three children from your first marriage (ages 18, 21, 24) and two stepchildren (ages 16, 19). Your estate includes your family home (£650,000), rental property (£300,000), business interests (£400,000), and investments (£250,000). You want your wife to live in the family home for life with your children inheriting your share after her death, and you want to minimize inheritance tax.

This requires professional legal advice. Expected cost: £1,000-£2,000+ for comprehensive estate planning.

The Middle Ground: Preview Then Consult

Many blended families benefit from a hybrid approach:

Use WUHLD to preview will structure and clarify your thinking (free preview, no payment required)
Understand exactly what you want to achieve
Identify which elements require trust structures or complex provisions
Consult a solicitor with clear objectives already defined

This approach reduces solicitor time (and fees) because you arrive with clear intentions rather than starting from scratch. You pay for specialized legal drafting, not for basic education about options.

Cost Comparison

Online will (WUHLD): £49.99 for complete will plus testator guide, witness guide, and asset inventory
Solicitor basic will for blended family: £300-£600 for straightforward provisions without trusts
Solicitor will with life interest trust: £500-£1,500 for professional trust deed drafting
Solicitor mutual wills: £800-£2,000+ for contractually binding paired wills
Complex estate planning: £1,500-£5,000+ for high-value estates with tax planning

Decision Framework

Ask yourself:

Do I need a life interest trust or property trust? → YES = Solicitor required
Is my estate over £1 million or include business interests? → YES = Solicitor required
Do all beneficiaries live in the UK? → NO = Solicitor required
Am I making straightforward specific bequests without complex conditions? → YES = Online will suitable
Do I anticipate family disputes or inheritance challenges? → YES = Solicitor recommended

Be honest about complexity. If you're unsure, the conservative choice is professional advice. But many blended families genuinely have straightforward situations suitable for online wills once they understand the options.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Do I have to leave anything to my stepchildren in my will?

A: No, you have no legal obligation to include stepchildren unless you've formally adopted them. However, stepchildren can make claims under the Inheritance Act 1975 if they can prove you treated them "as a child of the family" and the will makes inadequate provision for their maintenance. Consider the length of your relationship, their age when you became stepparent, and their other sources of support when making this decision.

Q: Does getting remarried cancel my existing will?

A: Yes. Marriage automatically revokes any will made before the marriage unless the will explicitly states it was made "in contemplation of marriage" to your named spouse. You must make a new will after your wedding—if you die without doing so, intestacy rules apply regardless of your previous will's contents.

Q: Can my spouse change their will after I die and disinherit my children?

A: Yes, if you used mirror wills. The surviving spouse can legally change their will at any time after your death, regardless of verbal agreements. There's no legal obligation to honor the original plan. This is why life interest trusts provide better protection—they legally prevent the surviving spouse from redirecting assets meant for your children.

Q: What happens to stepchildren if there's no will?

A: Under UK intestacy rules, stepchildren inherit nothing unless they were formally adopted. The estate passes to the surviving spouse and biological or legally adopted children. Stepchildren can attempt claims under the Inheritance Act 1975, but there's no automatic right to inherit.

Q: How much does a will cost for a blended family?

A: Online wills (like WUHLD) cost £49.99 and work well for straightforward blended family situations. Solicitor-drafted wills range from £300-£600 for basic provisions up to £1,500+ for wills including life interest trusts. Complex estates with tax planning can cost £1,500-£5,000+. The key is matching your will type to your situation's complexity.

Q: What is a life interest trust and how does it work?

A: A life interest trust allows your spouse to benefit from assets (typically living in the family home or receiving income from investments) during their lifetime without owning those assets outright. When your spouse dies or remarries, the assets pass to your children as remainder beneficiaries. This structure provides your spouse with security while guaranteeing your children's inheritance regardless of what happens in your spouse's future.

Protecting Everyone You Love: Your Next Steps

Blended families are now one in three UK families, but inheritance law hasn't caught up. Without proper planning, your own children can be accidentally disinherited, or your new spouse can be left vulnerable.

The good news: straightforward solutions exist.

Key actions to take now:

Understand your legal position: Stepchildren have no automatic intestacy rights, and remarriage revokes existing wills—make a new will immediately after your wedding
Avoid the mirror wills trap: Leaving everything to your spouse with a verbal agreement to look after your children has no legal force; circumstances change over 20 years
Consider life interest trusts: They provide for your spouse during their lifetime while legally protecting your children's inheritance from remarriage, financial pressure, or changing circumstances
Make explicit provisions: Name all beneficiaries explicitly in your will—"my children" doesn't automatically include stepchildren
Change property ownership: Switch to tenants in common (not joint tenants) so your share passes via your will rather than automatically to your spouse
Review all beneficiary forms: Update life insurance and pension nominations to name your children directly, bypassing your will entirely
Make a new will after remarriage: Marriage automatically cancels previous wills—making a new one within the first month of marriage is essential

Blended families are built on love, compromise, and hope. Your will should reflect those values—protecting everyone you care about without forcing impossible choices.

With clear planning, you can provide security for your spouse and your children without conflict.

Create your will with WUHLD today and preview your document free before paying anything. For straightforward blended families, you can make a legally valid UK will in 15 minutes for just £49.99 (compared to £650+ for a solicitor).

You'll receive:

Your complete, legally binding will
A 12-page Testator Guide explaining exactly how to execute your will
A Witness Guide for the people who'll witness your signature
A Complete Asset Inventory document to organize your estate

No solicitor appointments. No hidden fees. No subscriptions.

If your situation requires trust arrangements, use WUHLD to preview will structures and clarify your wishes first, then consult a solicitor with clear objectives already defined. Either way, take the first step today.

Ready to Create Your Will?

WUHLD makes it simple to create a legally valid will online in just 15 minutes. Our guided process ensures your wishes are properly documented and your loved ones are protected.

Start creating your will now — it's quick, affordable, and backed by legal experts.

Legal Disclaimer: This article provides general information about UK will planning for blended families and does not constitute legal advice. Estate planning for blended families can involve complex legal and tax considerations. For advice specific to your individual situation, please consult a qualified solicitor. WUHLD's online will service is suitable for straightforward UK estates; complex situations involving trusts, high-value estates, or contentious family dynamics may require professional legal advice.

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