Half of Canadians don't have a will: report

More than half of Canadians (51%) say they have no last will and testament in place, finds a report by Angus Reid Institute, and only 35% say they have one that is up to date.

In other words, half of Canadians are set to have no say in what happens to their assets should they die, says the firm, and the few that have wills haven’t kept them current.

Why put off estate-planning? One-quarter (25%) say they haven’t written a will because they’re too young to worry about it, and 23% say they don’t have enough assets to make a will worthwhile.

Here are some additional findings.

Older Canadians (aged 55+) are nearly four times as likely as the youngest cohort (18-34) and twice as likely as 35 to 54 year olds to say they have an up-to-date will in place (58% compared to 15% and 29%, respectively).

Quebec and B.C. are the only provinces in Canada where a majority of people say they have a will in place (58% in Quebec and 54% in B.C.).

Women are noticeably less likely than men to have a will (46% versus 53%) and are nearly twice as likely to point to the legal costs associated with writing one as the main reason why.

Read the full report.

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