Will vs Living Will – what’s the difference?
Making a will is one of those things that a lot of us think about but according to the National Will Register, less than half of UK adults have actually put pen to paper.
At Otus Live-in Care, we often have conversations with clients and their families about later life planning – it’s an important part of understanding our clients’ needs and preferences – and very often this can include talking about a Will or Living Will. It’s important to seek advice from experienced legal professionals – something we always advise our clients to do.
Whilst they may sound the same, Wills and Living Wills serve very different purposes.
The most common type of Will is that associated with recording how to make sure your money, property, possessions and investments (known as your estate) go to the people and causes you care about when you die. Knowing that you have chosen what you want to happen can also help ease distress for loved ones left behind as well as minimise potential disputes.
However a Living Will is a document you can create that’ll serve to advise (in advance) your wishes about the type of end-of-life treatment and care plans you do – or don’t – want. The main purpose of a Living Will is to ensure your voice is heard when it comes to medical intervention and care, even if you’re in a position where you can’t speak for yourself.
A Living Will makes sure medical decisions that are made on your behalf respect your wishes. These decisions could be in regards to everything from medication, to what extraordinary measures should be taken to save your life, to if you’d ever want feeding tubes used, to your feelings on life support. Essentially, a Living Will dictates the medical decisions you would want, before they ever need to be made.
Throughout the month of March, solicitors across the country are supporting an awareness campaign promoting the importance of not just making a Will, but making sure that it is kept updated. As a general rule, it is recommend that Wills are reviewed and updated every five years, or when a major change occurs that impacts you or your loved ones. This could be a marriage or a divorce, the birth of a grandchild or the death of someone close to you.
Otus has been introducing live-in carers to clients and sharing advice and guidance with families around later life planning for over 10 years. Whether you have an immediate need or are just thinking about future planning around the care for a loved one, we would be happy to talk, without obligation. Our number is 01403 710119.