As independent financial advisers (IFAs) and mortgage advisers, your role in guiding clients toward long-term financial success is crucial. Clients often focus on wealth creation—investments, property portfolios, and pension planning—but they may neglect the equally important aspect of wealth preservation. Without proper estate planning, even the most robust financial strategies can unravel due to unforeseen circumstances, tax inefficiencies, or family disputes.

At Beneficial Trust & Will Co, we specialise in will writing and estate planning, ensuring that the wealth your clients work so hard to build is protected and efficiently passed down to future generations.

What’s the difference between Wealth Creation and Wealth Preservation?

Wealth Creation is the process of accumulating assets through savings, investments, business growth, and property ownership. It involves strategies such as tax-efficient investing, leveraging pensions, and securing favourable mortgage terms.

Wealth Preservation ensures that those accumulated assets remain protected and can be transferred to loved ones in the most efficient manner possible. This involves estate planning tools such as wills, trusts and inheritance tax planning alongside lasting powers of attorney.

While wealth creation focuses on growing financial assets, wealth preservation ensures they are retained within the family and not unnecessarily diminished by taxation, probate costs, or legal challenges and complications.

Why Estate Planning is Crucial for Wealth Preservation

Many families fail to take the necessary steps to preserve their wealth, assuming that their assets will automatically pass to their loved ones. However, without a structured estate plan, the following risks arise:

1. Inheritance Tax (IHT) Burden – Without proactive planning, families can face significant IHT bills (currently at 40% above the nil-rate band). Strategies such as gifting, trusts, and business relief can mitigate this. It’s about using any tax reliefs that may be available and leaving no stone unturned.
2. Intestacy Rules – If a client dies without a will, their estate will be distributed according to UK intestacy laws, which may not align with their wishes.
3. Probate Delays & Costs – Without a valid will, probate can be a lengthy and costly process, potentially delaying access to funds for beneficiaries.
4. Family Disputes – A lack of clear instructions can lead to legal battles among loved ones, resulting in unnecessary financial and emotional strain.
5. Care Home Fees – clients need to plan ahead for their future care needs and take into consideration what their future care contributions could look like without appropriate planning in place.

So how can you add value to your clients?

As a trusted adviser, integrating estate planning discussions into client meetings can demonstrate a holistic approach to financial well-being. By opening the conversation and taking the lead with your clients, you can enable them to consider their entire approach to wealth preservation by taking key steps such as;

• Encourage Early Will Writing – A well-drafted will ensures assets are distributed as intended, reducing the risk of disputes and providing some level of certainty that wishes will be carried out as your clients direct them to be.
• Consider Trusts for Asset Protection – for the right clients in the right circumstances, trusts can safeguard assets from third party creditors and help to shield from potential future divorces of beneficiaries as well as heading off relative dependent claims in the future.
• Review Life Insurance and Pension Nominations – Ensure that policies and pension death benefits are directed to the right people in the most tax-efficient manner.
• Discuss Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) – Having an LPA in place protects clients in the event they become incapacitated and unable to manage their finances, business interests and personal welfare.

Family Wealth Creation vs Family Wealth Preservation - A Collaborative Approach to Financial Security

By working alongside estate planning specialists like Beneficial Trust & Will Co, you can provide a comprehensive service that goes beyond wealth accumulation. Partnering with a dedicated will writing and estate planning firm ensures that your clients receive expert guidance in securing their financial legacy, giving them and their families peace of mind.

At Beneficial Trust and Will Co, we are here to support you and your clients in safeguarding their wealth for generations to come. If you’d like to explore how we can collaborate, get in touch today.