What Happens If a Beneficiary Dies Before Me?

The gift lapses

If a beneficiary dies before you, the default position in English law is that their gift fails. It does not automatically pass to their children or next of kin. It falls back into the residue of your estate and is distributed according to whatever your will says about the residue — or, if there are no backup instructions, into intestacy.

This is called a lapsed gift. It happens more often than people expect, particularly in wills that name older beneficiaries or that have not been updated in years.

The exception: gifts to children

There is one important exception. If you leave a gift to your own child or grandchild (a direct descendant) and they die before you but leave children of their own, those grandchildren automatically inherit their parent's share. This is the Commorientes rule and is set out in section 33 of the Wills Act 1837.

So if you leave £20,000 to your daughter and she dies before you, her children — your grandchildren — inherit that £20,000 between them. This only applies to direct descendants and only in the absence of a contrary intention in the will.

Contingent beneficiaries

The cleaner solution for any gift — to a child, a friend, or anyone else — is to name a contingent beneficiary in your will. A contingent beneficiary is a backup: the person who receives the gift if your first choice cannot.

For example: "I leave £10,000 to my brother David, and if he does not survive me, to his daughter Emma." If David dies before you, Emma inherits. If Emma has also died, the gift lapses — unless you have named a further backup.

Per stirpes

Per stirpes is a Latin term meaning "by branch." A per stirpes provision means that if a beneficiary dies before you, their share passes to their own children in equal parts, automatically, without needing to name each one.

It is particularly useful for residuary gifts where you cannot easily predict who will be alive when you die. Instead of naming every grandchild individually, you can leave your estate to your children per stirpes and trust that the distribution will follow the family tree correctly.

The practical point

Name contingent beneficiaries for every significant gift. Review your will when a beneficiary dies — even if you think the backup provisions cover it. A will that clearly accounts for what happens when people predecease you will be much easier for your executor to administer.

PureWill lets you name backup beneficiaries for residuary gifts and add specific contingent instructions for other gifts.