The Myth
We've lived together for over five years and have a child, so we are automatically next of kin.
The Dangerous Myth of the “Common Law” Spouse
Believing this single legal myth leaves millions of UK cohabiting couples completely unprotected. Learn the cold legal truth before a crisis forces it upon you.
Fact vs. Fiction in UK Law
The UK legal system does not recognise cohabitation as a marriage equivalent. There is no shifting threshold where a relationship suddenly becomes legally binding in terms of property and death. It makes no difference if you have lived together for 2 years or 40 years.
The Reality
You have zero automatic inheritance rights. If your partner is rushed to intensive care, doctors are legally bound to consult biological parents or siblings over you. You cannot sign medical consent forms or access their personal medical records without prior planning.
The Myth
We bought our house together, so the roof over our heads automatically goes to the survivor.
The Reality
If your property deeds are structured as ‘Tenants in Common’ and you do not have a will, your share does not go to your partner. Your partner will be forced to raise capital to buy out your biological family just to keep living in their own home.
The Myth
Everything is in joint accounts, so we are completely safe anyway.
The Reality
While joint bank accounts do pass by survivorship, personal investments, vehicles, sole trader businesses, and individual savings accounts (ISAs) do not. These are frozen instantly upon death and distributed away from your partner.
The Rules of Intestacy, When You Have No Will
When someone dies without a valid will in the UK, their estate is distributed via the Rules of Intestacy. This rigid, unyielding statutory checklist completely excludes unmarried partners, regardless of financial dependency.
01
Biological or Adopted Children
Inherit everything equally. If they are minors, the funds are held in trust, and the surviving partner may have to fight the courts to access money for daily upbringing.
02
Surviving Parents
If there are no children, the parents inherit the estate, including the deceased person's share of the home.
03
Siblings
If the parents have passed away, brothers and sisters inherit everything.
04
Nieces and Nephews
The law continues searching for blood relatives rather than automatically passing the estate to an unmarried partner.
Unmarried partner = not automatically included
If you are unmarried, your partner has exactly the same automatic legal right to your estate as a total stranger walking past your house on the street:
Absolutely None
Stop Relying on a Myth. Get the Hard Facts.
Speak with an expert to audit your current living setup, bank accounts, and property titles to see exactly where your family is exposed.
Request Your Intestacy Risk Assessment