Martin Lewis says unmarried couples risk losing their home due to little-known rule
The consumer guru says 'in law it means diddly squat' if you have been together for years but are not married or in a civil partnership
by Alex Evans, Sonia Sharma · ChronicleLiveUnmarried couples are being warned they could lose their homes if they don't take action to secure their future.
The warning comes from consumer champion Martin Lewis and is for people who are together but not married or in a civil partnership. It all comes down to a little-known rule about how inheritance works and what happens to your estate after you die.
Martin has urged people who are not married to take action as soon as possible, because if the worst does happen, you could find the partner you leave behind being thrown out of your house, even if you own it. Speaking on The Martin Lewis podcast on BBC Sounds, Spotify and Apple Music, the financial expert said: "For unmarried couples, and by unmarried I mean you’re not married and you don’t have a civil partnership which is legally akin to marriage.
"If you are unmarried, in law it basically means diddly squat. That’s the best way to think about it.
"It’s irrelevant. You may have been together for decades, everybody may know you’re a couple, you may have 35 children, in law it means diddly squat."
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Martin then added that you need a will, otherwise your other half could find themselves without a home if you die, reports the Express. He added: "So you need if you want to look after your inheritance either make a will or do some form of contract or do a civil partnership or get married.
"That’s what you need to do to protect your assets. You could find that your partner that you lived with for years doesn’t get your house and can’t stay in the house."
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