What "intestate" means
Dying intestate simply means dying without a valid Will. When that happens, you don't get to choose who inherits. Instead, the law applies a fixed order of priority that begins with your spouse or civil partner, then your children, then your parents and so on outwards through your wider family.
If you have no surviving relatives at all, your estate passes to the Crown — known as bona vacantia.
Who inherits — the intestacy order in plain English
- Married or civil partner with no children: spouse takes everything.
- Married or civil partner with children: spouse takes the first £322,000, plus half of what's left. The other half is split equally between the children.
- Unmarried with children: children inherit everything in equal shares.
- Unmarried with no children: parents inherit. If parents have died, siblings. If no siblings, half-siblings, then grandparents, then aunts and uncles.
- No surviving relatives: estate passes to the Crown.
Sorting your Will is the first step — and the cheapest one.
ClearLegacy: £69 single Will · £99 mirror Wills · checked against the Wills Act 1837 · usually delivered within 24 hours. No subscriptions.
Start my Will — 15 minutesThe biggest gaps in the intestacy rules
- Unmarried partners get nothing. Cohabiting partners are not recognised, no matter how long you've been together.
- Step-children are excluded. Only biological and legally adopted children inherit.
- No specific gifts. You can't leave a particular item or sum to a friend, charity, or anyone outside the strict family order.
- No guardian appointment. If your children are under 18, the family court decides who looks after them.
- Inheritance Tax is often higher. Intestacy can split estates in ways that waste the spousal exemption or the residence nil-rate band.
When this matters
Married with no children
Your spouse inherits everything. Often a clean outcome — but a Will is still useful for guardian backup if children come later.
Married with children
Spouse takes £322k + half. Children share the rest. Often splits the family home in unwanted ways.
Cohabiting partner
Your partner gets nothing. Property reverts to your closest blood relatives, even if you've lived together for decades.
Estranged family
If you have no Will, your estate may pass to relatives you haven't spoken to in years — there's no way for the law to know who you actually wanted to benefit.
Don't leave it to the rules — sort it tonight
Intestacy rarely produces what people actually want for their family. A Will fixes that — start in 15 minutes for £69.
Start My Will — £69 →What changed in 2026
- Statutory legacy: still £322,000. It has not changed since 26 July 2023 (re-checked 4 November 2026).
- Applying to deal with the estate: the fee for letters of administration rose from £300 to £526 on 13 July 2026 for estates worth more than £5,000.
- Pensions from 6 April 2027: pension funds still pass under the scheme’s own rules and nomination form rather than the intestacy rules. Under the Finance Act 2026, most unused funds will also count towards the estate for inheritance tax when someone dies on or after 6 April 2027.
- Tax thresholds: the nil-rate bands stay frozen until April 2031.
Frequently asked questions
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