Wills and Effects BRd 2

CHAPTER 55

WILLS AND EFFECTS

(MOD Sponsor: FLEET-NLM WS NCB)

CONTENTS

J.SECTION I - WILLS

Para
J.5501. Wills

SECTION II - DISPOSAL OF PAY AND EFFECTS

5511. General
5523. Ratings Invalided for Insanity
5524. Personnel Missing, Prisoner of War or Interned in a Neutral Country
5525. Release of Reserved Effects of Persons Reported ‘Missing’
5526. Release of Effects of Prisoners of War and Internees
5527. Effects of Deceased Prisoners of War or Internees

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CHAPTER 55

WILLS AND EFFECTS

J.SECTION I - WILLS

Note. See also JSP 751, Chapter 12

J.5501. Wills

1. Methods of Ccompiling a Will. The recommended methods of making a will which

are available to Service personnel may be summarized as follows:

a. As for civilians

(1) By drawing up a will on expert advice.

(2) By using one of the printed forms which can be purchased.
(3) By writing a simple will on a sheet of paper.

b. Methods available to Service personnel only

(1) Use of MOD Form No. 106 (see sub para 4).
(2) In exceptional circumstances, as stated in sub para 6.

2. Applicability of Laws. Subject to the exceptions stated in sub para 6, the laws which
apply to the making of wills by civilians apply to the making of wills by members of the
Armed Forces. The laws for England, Wales and Northern Ireland differ from those for
Scotland and other parts of the world. Personnel domiciled outside these countries, or who
are not British subjects, and who wish to make a will are advised to obtain legal advice in
order to ascertain the procedure which must be followed and the formalities which must be
observed. Persons under the age of 18 years cannot make a will under the law applicable
to England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Persons domiciled in Scotland may, however,
make a will at the age of 14 years.

3. Commanding Officer’s Responsibilities. Commanding Officers are to ensure that

all personnel entitled to make a will are urged to do so. Personnel making a will should be
advised that if for any reason they afterwards wish to change the distribution of their estate
they should make a fresh will. In addition Commanding Officers are to remind personnel
that it may be desirable to make a will (or a fresh will) on any alteration of marital status or
change of next-of-kin and that it is desirable to make a will before proceeding overseas.

They should point out that if no will is made the estate (including money, balance of pay
and personal belongings) must be distributed in the event of death according to the laws
of the country of domicile governing intestate estates, which may result in the estate
having to be distributed in a way which the deceased would not have wished, and that the
nomination of a next-of-kin does not take the place of a will.

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4. MOD Form of Will. A form of will (MOD Form No. 106) may be obtained on application
to the Commanding Officer. The attention of personnel using this form should be drawn to
the Notes on the reverse side of the form. Personnel may make their own arrangements
for drawing up a will if they prefer to do so.

5. Advice for Personnel Abroad. (Navy only) Officers serving in the Army Legal Aid
Units and Royal Air Force Legal Services will give advice to personnel (including Naval
personnel) serving outside the United Kingdom who wish to make their wills. Personnel at
home should be advised to seek the aid of a solicitor.

6. Informal Wills. Service personnel, including those under 18 years of age, may be
able to make informal unwitnessed wills, usually during war time, but in the interests of
their beneficiaries they should make a privileged will at the earliest opportunity. Naval
personnel under 18 years of age may also, when at sea, make a privileged will.

7. Completed Wills. Completed wills should not be kept with personal belongings, but
should be deposited in safe custody. Officers must make their own arrangements for the
safe custody of their wills. A rating, soldier or airman may hand a completed will to his
Commanding Officer, who is to forward it by recorded post to (Navy only) the Inspector of
Seamen’s Wills, PPPA(C) RN Final Pay, Centurion Building, Gosport, Hants. They are to
retain the receipt of registration until they have been informed by the recipient that the will
has been deposited in safe custody. Alternatively, a serviceman can make his own
arrangements for custody.

5502 - 5510. Unallocated

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SECTION II - DISPOSAL OF PAY AND EFFECTS

5511. General

1. Instructions for the disposal of pay and effects of deceased officers and ratings are
contained in JSP 751, Joint Casualty Compassionate Policy and Procedures, Chapter 12.

5512 - 5522. Unallocated

5523. Ratings Invalided for Insanity

1. The uniform or unreserved effects of naval ratings or Royal Marines other ranks
invalided for insanity are to be sold by auction in accordance with JSP 751, particulars
being entered on Form S.46, which should be forwarded in duplicate to the Ministry of
Defence (FLEET-NLM WS NCB) through PPPA(C) RN Final Pay, Centurion Building,
Gosport who will attach the final statement of account.

5524. Personnel Missing, Prisoner of War or Interned in a Neutral Country

1. In this Article the term ‘missing person’ is to be read as including officers and men who
are reported ‘missing’, taken prisoner of war, or interned in a neutral country. The effects
of missing persons are to be dealt with in the same way as those of persons deceased, in
accordance with JSP 751, subject to the following modifications:

a. Cash Found - action. Cash found in effects is to be taken on charge at Vote 1AC
86F803 for ratings and Vote 1AC 86F802 for officers, but is to be credited to the
missing person’s account before it is transferred elsewhere. If the account is not
carried locally the cash is to be taken on charge locally and details of the voucher
are to be signalled to the Supply Officer holding the account so that credit may be
made.

b. Notification of cash found. Particulars of cash found amongst effects, and a

statement of the action taken to credit it to the missing person’s pay account, are
to be noted on Form S.46.

c. Inventory. The inventory on Form S.46 is to record all effects, both reserved and
unreserved.

d. Unreserved effects of ratings. The unreserved effects of naval ratings or Royal

Marines other ranks are not on any account to be sold before receipt of notification
of official presumption of death.

e. Home station procedure. In ships and establishments at home the effects of

missing persons are to be dealt with as in JSP 751, but the original and duplicate
copies of the inventories are to be sent under separate cover to the consignee
instead of to Casualty and Deceased Estates, Glasgow.

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f. Missing persons. The effects of persons who are reported ‘missing’ from ships
and establishments abroad are to be retained on the station for three months or
until the persons concerned are reported to be prisoners of war or interned. They
are then to be dealt with at once in accordance with JSP 751, inventories being
disposed of as in e.

g. Procedure - ship abroad. Ships abroad should land effects of missing persons at
the nearest shore establishment as soon as possible, to be dealt with under f. The
name of the authority in whose charge the effects have been placed is to be
reported by the ship concerned to the appropriate home authority mentioned in
JSP 751.

5525. Release of Reserved Effects of Persons Reported ‘Missing’

1. When death has been officially presumed the arrangements for the release and
dispatch of reserved effects are as laid down in Para 5524 except that the receipt obtained
from the consignee is to be attached to the original copy of the inventory on Form S.46 and
forwarded to Casualty and Deceased Estates, Glasgow. Compromising documents are to
be dealt with as in JSP 751.

2. In exceptional cases the Ministry of Defence (FLEET-NLM WS NCB) may give specific
approval for the release of reserved effects before official presumption of death. If this is
done, any documents of value are to be excluded from the effects released and retained
in naval custody.

5526. Release of Effects of Prisoners of War and Internees

1. When an officer or man is reported to be a prisoner of war or interned, the person

officially recorded as his nearest relative or friend will be informed, as part of the casualty
procedure, how application should be made for release of the effects of the officer or man
concerned. On receipt of such application, but not otherwise, the effects may be released
accordingly, but confidential or compromising documents are not to be sent with the effects
unless the application from the nearest relative or friend is accompanied by a written
authority for the release of these confidential effects signed by the prisoner of war or
internee. Release of effects is to be carried out in accordance with JSP 751, but the receipt
obtained from the nearest relative or friend, accompanied by the original inventory on Form
S.46, is to be sent: for an officer, to the Ministry of Defence (FLEET-NLM WS NCB), for a
rating, to the Captain (Area Officer) of his welfare authority, and for any Royal Marines
other rank to the Corps Casualty Officer, DRM, Whale Island, Portsmouth.

5527. Effects of Deceased Prisoners of War or Internees

1. When notification is received of the death of a prisoner of war or internee, and action
has not already been taken as Para 5525, the procedure for release of effects is as in
JSP 751, Chapter 13. If release of effects has already been made, the authority holding
the receipts and original inventory (see Para 5525) is to send these documents to the
Casualty and Deceased Estates, Glasgow.

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