How does it differ to my current will?
Most clients we see have a mirror will, or single will.
In a mirror will all the estate is left to a spouse or civil partner on the first death, and then onto their beneficiaries. Or they have a single will which also then leaves their estate to their beneficiaries. This is known as an absolute gift. It also means it forms part of the beneficiaries estate and is open to social impacts such as divorce or creditor’s, it also means it impacts on the beneficiaries estate for future issues such as inheritance tax and care fee planning.
Blood line planning eliminates these issues because the gifts are made via a trust, set up whilst the settlors (the will makers) are still alive, thus changing the legal entity of the gift , meaning the beneficiaries still benefit from the gift if required, but it doesn’t form part of their estate, thus protecting the estate down the blood line.
When should I plan?
Now, it’s as simple as that, today's families come in all shapes and sizes, with all sorts of problem , with a divorce rate now one in two, and both secured and unsecured personal debt at an all-time high it makes sense to plan ahead whilst you are still of sound mind and body.
How long does it take?
From application completion with just the settlors to final signature date with the trustees present, it can take up to 12 weeks. After the initial application we send out quality approval documents through our legal partners to be checked and signed, once this is complete a signing date where all parties IE settlors, trustees and an independent witness (friend or neighbour) is arranged. If trustees cannot attend due to distance a postal signing can be done with them , once the wills and trusts are signed we can arrange storage of the legal documents , with copies to the settlors , or the settlors can have the binder and arrange to store them themselves