Helping a person with sight loss prepare or amend their Will
Find out how you can help prepare a Will for a client with sight loss.
Preparing a Will for a client with sight loss
If you're meeting a client who is blind or partially sighted for the first time, our Will writing for people with sight loss guide may help. It contains practical advice for meetings in a home or office environment as well as some tips for making documents more accessible.
We can also provide braille and audio versions of a Will through the RNIB transcription team who you can contact by emailing [email protected].
Administering an estate
Being an executor carries a lot of responsibility at a difficult time.
RNIB recommends best practices set out in "Guidance notes for Lay Executors" (PDF) published by the Institute of Legacy Management (ILM). This guide is designed to provide a helpful reference during the administration of estates involving charitable beneficiaries. If you are a solicitor or professional advisor, we can support you in preparing a Will. For more information on the responsibilities of executors (where there is a valid Will) and administrators (where there is no Will) see HMRC's information on inheritance tax.
Inheritance tax
Inheritance Tax (IHT) is usually paid on an estate when somebody dies. It's also sometimes payable on trusts or gifts made during someone's lifetime. Most estates don't have to pay IHT because they're valued at less than the threshold which is currently £325,000. If the estate - including any assets held in trust and gifts made within seven years of death - is more than the threshold, tax is payable at 40 per cent. However, anyone who leaves 10 per cent or more of their net estate to charity can choose to pay a reduced rate of IHT of 36 per cent.
If you need any further advice or assistance with regard to calculating and apportioning IHT, you can contact the legacy team at [email protected] or 0303 123 9999. You can also visit HMRC's website for more information.
Payments from an estate to RNIB
When you are in a position to make a payment from the estate, please contact the legacy team at [email protected] or 0303 123 9999 so that we can advise you on the best way to do this. We can also offer guidance if a legacy has been left to a specific fund or area of RNIB's work and you are unsure to who to make the payment.
Legacy administration guide
RNIB has a helpful free guide available to download for Will writing professionals and executors, explaining what you can do to help when administrating a legacy in favour of RNIB: