Martin Lewis' MSE urges couples to spend 'under £100' now after woman's warning

Finance expert Selina Flavius, the Black Girl Finance founder, joined Olamide Majekodunmi on her podcast All Things Money to discuss inheritance.

Martin Lewis' Money Saving Expert has reminded couples to complete a vital task - after a woman who lost her partner issued a stark warning about handling inheritance. Finance expert Selina Flavius, the Black Girl Finance founder, joined Olamide Majekodunmi on her podcast All Things Money to discuss inheritance.

Selina lost her partner of 10 years to a sudden heart attack just six months before their wedding. She told listeners: “I went from thinking about wedding dresses and bouquets of flowers to, you know, flowers, but for a completely different reason and organising things for his funeral.”

The 40-year-old said: “If you're unmarried as well in the UK, in England in particular, there's a bit of a myth of a common law wife or a husband. If you're unmarried, it's not the case. It's very, very difficult. I even had difficulty speaking to a solicitor just to kind of try and sort out my partner's affairs and advocate for myself whilst going through the loss.

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"There's so many different financial angles.” She explained: “In the immediate aftermath of loss, although it's probably the last thing that you want to think about or deal with, you do have to deal with the finances. There's a misconception that someone that's got any debts that they're suddenly wiped out.

"They're not - you have to look at a person's estate, so the things that they own, and work out what their debts are. Those debts need to be paid off from their estate. Although it's probably the furthest thing from your mind, it is something that needs to be sorted out.”

Selina particularly urged people who aren’t married to “have a conversation about your husband or wives or your spouse's wishes”. Martin Lewis continues to promote the need to write a Will, and his Money Saving Expert says: "Die without having made a will and you could be leaving behind significant financial problems for your loved ones. Yet worryingly, we've found that more than half of adults don't have a will, or have one that's out of date. Fortunately, there are low-cost will-writing options out there."

Will-writing services can offer savings against standard solicitor fees, with prices starting under £100. MSE said: "These services may be online-based – using digital tools to draft your will – operate by post, or will involve someone coming to visit you at home. This could be more convenient than going to see a solicitor."