Around half of Kiwis don't have a will, according to the Commission for Financial Capability.

A report released by Perpetual Guardian last year found 1500 people die each year without a will.

Wilton-Skinner said in hindsight she believes it was her responsibility to make sure her husband had a will as she was the one whose circumstances were most affected by his death.

"It is really on you."

She says it is easy for young people to put off getting a will and insurances.

"When you are in your 30s you think you are pretty untouchable. It is not something you think about."

"Hindsight is such a wonderful thing."

Wilton-Skinner says she had to pay for her husband's funeral using a pay-out from his work and her work also were kind enough to give her money towards it.

She was lucky to have received an inheritance from her uncle a month before her husband's death which allowed her to renovate the house.

"If I hadn't had that I would have had to sell the house and I would have lost money because of the state it was in."

"It worked out okay for me. But if I didn't have money from my uncle it would have been a lot harder situation."

Wilton-Skinner said age should not be an excuse.

"You just never know...when it is your time, it is your time. You have got to protect yourself from the what-ifs."

Katrina Shanks, chief executive of Financial Advice New Zealand, said Kiwis had little financial resilience when things go wrong.

"Debt levels are high; the cost of living is high; savings are low and so are the number of Kiwis covered by insurance, or with a plan in place for their financial future."

Shanks said too few Kiwis sought financial advice which could help them keep afloat when life events hit.