Ask Sarah Anderson from Cancer Research UK your questions about leaving legacy gifts in your Will

I have supported CRUK with monthly direct debits for many years and will continue to do so.

I won’t have a lot to leave in my will to my own small family coming from a Northern working class background and I myself have never benefitted from an inheritance, nor am I ever likely to.

I would consider leaving a small bequest to CRUK . The only thing that puts me off is the thought that some executives getting very rich off the back of donations that might be better off in my own children’s pocket. How can you assure me that this is not the case .

What happens if I leave some money to CRUK but then there isn't enough in my estate to pay them?

is it better to tell family you have left a legacy gift or better not?

What other sources of funding support CRUK?

I have often wondered what percentage of my money if I left some to CRUK would actually go into research it’s self? I’m always worried that it will go to corporate people in suits rather than actual Research into Cancer?

I would certainly consider doing this for my future generations, great idea would to be have card to make family aware of this, does it all go directly to CRUK or is there money taken from it that would be my worry don’t like middle men!

I am undecided as to whether leave anything to a big organisation.
Why? Because I have heard of people being harried for the bequest, and I don't like the thought of that happening to my family at such a distressing time.

Doe this happen with CRUK?

I have made arrangements in my Will for several legacy gifts to be made, all to relatively small and local charities I’ve been involved with over the years. I’ve avoided larger charities because of the concerns others have already mentioned.......fat cat salaries for CEOs, money spent....wasted?....on administration...and relatives being pursued etc....Can you provide any reassurance ....facts and figures etc which might lead me to change my mind?

Who implements the payment when I pass?

We already did just that when we updated our will after the birth of our granddaughters

I shall be leaving a legacy to Cancer Research UK.
I have had Breast Cancer twice and it is important to me that research is ongoing with the best researchers available.
I am concerned about CEO's salaries and too much spent on administration.
I should like to see how the legacies are spent which should be freely available.

Is the legacy liable to tax?

What amount is one expected to leave? Is there a set amount? What happens if there isn't enough money in the estate to cover the amount promised when you die?

Is leaving a legacy in a will using these free wills supported by charities, equally as good as using a solicitor direct.

How do I know WHICH cancer charity to choose? My mother had pancreatic cancer, my father has just been diagnosed with prostate cancer. Marie Curie nurses, and the local hospice, were both very helpful when my mother was ill, at the end of her life. Is it best to support a charity like CRUK, or a more local/specific cancer charity? At the moment I try to support all of them, but if leaving money in my will, it might be easier to support one or two.

I will have very little to leave as my small nuclear family will necessarily always come first, particularly as I now finally have a long awaited and cherished little grandson whose future I will definitely want to help towards. I just wondered if even a very small donation to CRUK would be helpful or might seem too embarrassing paltry and mean to even consider?

Can you stipulate how you wish your legacy is spent, for example, can you ask it is spent on research rather than fund-raising?

What percentage of my donation goes to the cause?

Are the funds bequeathed used for specific projects? Is the gifter identifiable?

Is it advisable to nominate more than one charity in case one of them folds or receives bad publicity due to mismanagement or unsavoury behaviour of its members?

What percentage of any donation is spent on research and personnel and how much is spent on fund raising?

Unfortunately the recent case(s?) of charities fighting relatives over a legacy has left a rather nasty taste.
Ditto the salaries of some CEO's. I understand that one has to pay for top people but when some CEO's receive eye-watering sums, it puts me off donating to that charity.
I am not keen on the idea of a percentage being given to charity in my will.
As I trust my family implicitly I will ask them to donate to a charity (or two) on my behalf - they know the charities that I currently support and that are dear to me. This way, they are comfortable with the amount they donate and I know that the money will arrive at the charity.

My question is- why are the directors of charities paid so much? Don't say that it's to get the best, because the hard slog is done by volunteers, not by the paid people at the top; they're just pen pushers and freebie lovers. Being the Prime Minister of a country is far more important than being a director of a charity and that position is poorly paid, in comparison.

David Miliband is reported to be paid $500,000 a year by the charity job he took, when he left this country in a huff because his brother won the Labour leadership. International Rescue, my ar*e? Isn't that the job of Thunderbirds!!!! All these high salaries means less for the actual purpose of the charity, which is why I only give to local small charities which are mainly volunteer based.

are posts working with the charity paid according to what is considered to be a fair scale, or do you negotiate with individuals to finalise their salaries?