Contact us
If you support our changes, let us know. A few words in our Contact Us form or by email to info@predatorymarriage.uk is very much appreciated!
If you know of anyone in a similar situation to us, get them to contact us. The more cases we know about, the stronger our case for change becomes. And it is just possible that we can offer some advice.
Write to your MP
We already have support from many MPs from all political parties. The more MPs are aware of our campaign, and the more support we have, the better. This is especially helpful as we are working to get our changes back into Parliament.
You can find out all about how to contact your MP at www.writetothem.com or www.parliament.uk/get-involved/contact-an-mp-or-lord/contact-your-mp.
It is best if you write in your own words; but we see many requests for a template for the letter, so here is our suggestion:
Dear (name of MP)
Fabian Hamilton MP and his constituent Daphne Franks have been campaigning against
Predatory Marriage since 2016. Fabian Hamilton raised the topic in Parliament in a
Private Member’s Bill in November 2018 – The Marriage and Civil Partnership (Consent)
Bill, which had cross-party support but unfortunately ran out of Parliamentary time.
After Daphne’s mother, Joan Blass’s, death age 92 in March 2016, it was discovered that a
much-younger man had married her in total secrecy five months earlier. Joan had
advanced vascular dementia and never knew she was married.
A strong legal incentive, in that marriage revokes a Will, plus many procedural loopholes at
marriage have come to light and these are the issues that Fabian and Daphne are aiming
to solve:
Legal Incentive:
Marriage revokes a Will, as though it had never existed, and the predator would therefore
inherit a large portion of the estate.
Issues with current safeguards * :
• If the victim has set up a power of attorney, the attorney is not notified if the victim
marries.
• Notifications of marriage are displayed on notice boards in register offices and are not
easily searchable or listed online.
• No evidence is kept at the point of marriage – no video or audio recordings – once a
marriage certificate is attained the following impact on wills is almost impossible to
challenge.
• Registrars have responsibility for judgment of mental capacity on the day. These persons
may not have training on dementia or mental capacity.
• There is an absence of joined up safeguarding between different relevant organisations
and an absence of standardised safeguarding or mental capacity training.
(* Credit: Hourglass March 2022)
Please could you get in touch with Fabian Hamilton and support his campaign for change?
Yours etc
Spread the story as wide as you can
Many people do not know that a marriage revokes a Will, and until we can change this, it continues to lead to emotional pain and financial loss for so many families. Just knowing about it might mean a family can take action before it is too late.