Posted on June 18, 2026
The Ministry of Justice made headlines last week when it launched a consultation that could transform the legal standing of an estimated 3.5 million unmarried couples in England and Wales. For the first time, the government is formally considering giving cohabitants automatic inheritance rights, stronger financial protections on separation, and the option to make legally binding prenuptial agreements — rights that married couples have long taken for granted.
Read More Posted on June 16, 2026
When Justine Fernandes and her brother began sorting through their mother's estate after her death, they did what many grieving families do: they estimated what everything was worth, submitted those figures to HMRC, and paid their inheritance tax bill. The total came to £8,000. The problem was that the correct bill should have been just £1,400. They had overpaid by £6,600 — not through dishonesty, but through the very common mistake of overvaluing household belongings based on sentiment rather than market reality. Their story, published this week by Which?, is far from unusual.
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