Flexible amount given to charitable trust in will?

[mc2fool]

Setting up a charitable trust in a will may just add a layer of complexity and cost for your exors. You could earmark a certain amount to be given to charity, the charity/charities left to your exors' discretion, and leave a letter of wishes identifying those charities, as other have said. You could also leave the that same certain amount to e.g. a Legacy account at CAF. You add a list of charities attached to the Legacy account, which you can change from time to time (easier than changing your will). Just a thought. I have no connection with CAF https://www.cafonline.org/my-personal-giving/long-term-giving/legacies. Other providers may exist.

Ok but to add/change the list of charities you send CAF a letter of wishes, so it's not clear to me what the advantage is over doing the same to the holder of your will ... esp. given that CAF charge 1% of the legacy you leave through them.

[CliffEdge]

Giving money to charities is very pleasurable I find. Why don't you give it a go?

I do. I also have left bequests in my will to two of my favourite charities. Bequests can be more generous than gifts from income.

You clearly have no idea what you are talking about, having first posed a question then jumped to a conclusion about an obvious response.

TJH

Thank you that is very helpful. I will think about also giving some money to charity after my death though I like to keep my will as simple as possible.

[Gilgongo]

Ok but to add/change the list of charities you send CAF a letter of wishes, so it's not clear to me what the advantage is over doing the same to the holder of your will ... esp. given that CAF charge 1% of the legacy you leave through them.

I think it's mainly out of simplicity for the exectors. If you name CAF as the sole charity in your will, and a bunch of others in the letter of wishes (which you can update for free any time, unlike if the letter is a with a solicitor), then the executors just need to pay CAF and be done with it. CAF can also donate to organisations that aren't charities (as long as they pass CAF's criteria) so that's useful as well. And it saves the excutors from being hassled by charities named in the will, which become public once probate is granted (as pointed out by others here).

[mc2fool]

Ok but to add/change the list of charities you send CAF a letter of wishes, so it's not clear to me what the advantage is over doing the same to the holder of your will ... esp. given that CAF charge 1% of the legacy you leave through them.

I think it's mainly out of simplicity for the exectors. If you name CAF as the sole charity in your will, and a bunch of others in the letter of wishes (which you can update for free any time, unlike if the letter is a with a solicitor), then the executors just need to pay CAF and be done with it. CAF can also donate to organisations that aren't charities (as long as they pass CAF's criteria) so that's useful as well. And it saves the excutors from being hassled by charities named in the will, which become public once probate is granted (as pointed out by others here).

I understand the advantages of naming charities in a letter of wishes rather than in your will, but I don't see the difference between sending updated letters of wishes to CAF and sending updated letters of wishes to the holder(s) of your will. In neither case does it need to be formally drawn up or witnessed by a legal beagle, and indeed, it doesn't even need to be looked at. You can simply put any/each update in a sealed envelope marked with instruction to throw away the previous one, and the executors open the most recent when the day comes.

CAF's 1% can be quite a chunk for those leaving significant amounts to charity. The simplicity for the the executors point is noted though.

[pochisoldi]

Granting discretion to an executor means that they can distribute funds at a more personal level. They can deviate from the expression of wish document to allow recognition of charities who helped the deceased (and/or their close relatives) in the years/period before they died. The testator may not have had the opportunity to update that document, but the executor could "fix that".

An expression of wish issued to CAF won't have that flexibility.

[Gilgongo]

I understand the advantages of naming charities in a letter of wishes rather than in your will, but I don't see the difference between sending updated letters of wishes to CAF and sending updated letters of wishes to the holder(s) of your will.

CAF can give to (some) non-registered charities, don't forget, without causing a problem with the subseqent taxable value of the estate.

Granting discretion to an executor means that they can distribute funds at a more personal level.

So a clause in the will that says words to the effect that you give your executors discretion as to the amount (subject to a minimum) donated as well as a causes (presdumably directed by the letter of wishes) you mean? That would work for my purposes too I think.