Legacy Donations

Legacy donations, made through people’s Wills, add up to the largest single source of voluntary income for charities today, despite the fact that only 14% of Wills do in fact mention a charity. Legacies to registered charities are free of inheritance tax (which at the time of writing this starts at £325,000 per person).

For many, addressing their Will can be a very positive experience – allowing them to differentiate their wishes, leave things for those who may now have to deal with their worldly affairs, take care of their nearest and dearest, and consider what further causes may be close to their heart – perhaps providing something tangible by which others might remember them by.

Legacies can be very valuable to a charity. They can give opportunities for the charity to do something special rather than absorb a donation into the hard-pressed budget. They bring with them a tangible dimension that adds to the affectionate and loving memory of the person who has passed away. They are often a very clear expression of support for the charity’s work in the years to come, and can be a real help for making an impact on future generations.

It may not be right for everybody, but if you are thinking about making or reviewing your Will, and are seeking inspiration, the idea of leaving a legacy to Achalasia Action might just be a wonderfully appropriate gesture that will bear fruit to help meet the future needs of people with achalasia many years from now!

There are three main types of legacy that can be considered:

• A residuary legacy is a percentage of whatever is left over from an estate after debts, funeral expenses, administration costs, and all other gifts have been paid. The actual percentage is entirely up to you to decide. This provision ensures that the main beneficiaries or family are looked after first.
• A pecuniary legacy is a fixed sum of money that can be any amount, big or small. You may wish to ensure that it is proportion to other provisions to, say, people in your family. After many years, inflation can alter the value of these sums of money. Sometimes people make a provision for an annual increase to cater for inflation.
• A specific legacy is a gift of a particular item, such as property or an item of jewellery. The value of these gifts may vary enormously and may sometimes create an element of complexity for the charity trustees, as they may have to make special arrangements for it to be valued and sold.

It is noteworthy that a Will can be changed at any time.

One should always take qualified advice on making a will, but the relevant clause of a will might read as follows:

“I give the sum of £ (or specify percentage of residue of estate; or description of the item) to Achalasia Action (registered charity number 1187367 in England & Wales) for its general purposes and I declare that the receipt of the honorary treasurer or other proper officer of the said charity for the time being shall be a full and sufficient discharge for the said legacy. If before my death (or even after my death but before my executors have given effect to the gift) Achalasia Action has changed its name or amalgamated with any other charity or transferred all its assets to any other body then my executors shall give effect to the gift as if it were a gift to the body in its changed name or to the body which results from the amalgamation or to the body to which the assets have been transferred”

For further information please contact us at info@achalasia-action.org