Wills and Estate Planning: Who needs one? The answer is EVERYONE

There seems to be a misconception around Wills and the ‘right time’ to set one up. The most common misconception is that only people that are over 65 years of age, or people with a chronic illness require a Will.

So who needs a Will? The answer is EVERYONE and that includes YOU.

Like many, you might think that you don’t have enough assets to worry about, but you may be wrong.  Often there are superannuation funds you are not aware of and even life insurance linked to your superannuation.

Where would this money go after you die?

You can execute a Binding Death Benefit Nomination (BDBN) as part of your industry super, however the super fund can ultimately determine whether to pay the proceeds held in your super if your nominated beneficiary does not fall under a class of a certain type of relationship – namely, spouse, dependent or interdependent.

We recently heard of a case where a young lady tragically died aged 23 in a car accident.  She had nominated her mother to benefit from her $180,000 industry super death benefit.  The lady was also engaged to be married.  Unlike the lady’s mother, the fiancé did not have financial need.  The industry super fund in question did not pay out the $180,000.00 to the lady’s mother as she did not fall under the specific class of beneficiaries, and instead the proceeds were paid to the fiancé as he met the specific class requirement.

Had the lady directed her industry super to pay the BDBN to her ‘Legal Personal Representative’ (that is, the executor of her Will) and established a Legal Will naming her mother as a beneficiary, the lady’s intention of her mother receiving her super death benefit proceeds would have been fulfilled.

To ensure that your final wishes are carried out, please feel free to contact one of our Consultants any time so that we can refer you to a reputable and trusted Solicitor.