Just 1 in 6 get inheritance tax perk

THOUSANDS of families are missing out on a vital inheritance tax break.

The taxman took a record £5 billion in death duties in 2017-18, up £400 million on the previous year, by charging 40 pc on estates worth more than £325,000 (£650,000 for married couples).

But just one in six families who paid inheritance tax (IHT) benefited from the new family home allowance, though far more were expected to qualify. Last April, the Government introduced an additional £100,000 tax-free allowance for each individual (now £125,000) if you leave your main property to direct descendants, such as children. Yet just 3,065 estates claimed it from April to December, found a Freedom of Information request by NFU Mutual. It says 4,000 of 24,000 estates that paid IHT last year benefited. HMRC says the relief is automatically applied if families provide a will showing the estate has been bequeathed to direct descendants. You can claim via Form IHT435, too: call 0300 123 1072.