26/03/2022
Death is often the great unmentionable but it is one of two certainties in life.
It is with us all every single day, and in recent weeks – and in horrendous circumstances – it is there on our television screens daily too as a consequence of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Death cannot be beaten or cheated, it is a racing certainty of life and yet the thought of it often turns our stomachs and for the vast majority ‘doesn’t bear thinking about’.
For advisers however, it at the very least, has to be addressed and even more so for advisers with later life clients – not necessarily because they are more likely to die sooner, but because the consequences of them doing so are perhaps more far-reaching than for others.
Take Wills for example. According to Canada Life, 31 million UK adults don’t have a will in place and while that number grows smaller the older people get, the thought of being an older homeowner who doesn’t have their affairs in order should be an uncomfortable one.
The feedback I get from later life advisers is that they will often raise such matters with clients although as one adviser recently told me, the client “will very rarely do anything about it. They see the sense but it’s difficult for them.”
Lasting Power of Attorneys
A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is another key area that needs to be addressed.
I’ve often thought that LPAs should be mandatory with equity release products, especially in a sector dominated by drawdown where if a customer isn’t able to make decisions for themselves – for whatever reason – but doesn’t have an LPA in place, it means they can’t access the money that is rightfully theirs.
In that sense, LPAs which ensure those instructed are able to make these important decisions, seems like an obvious element to incorporate into the provision of advice, because while people clearly won’t think that anything untoward can happen to them, it does. It happens to people every single day.
The point however is really not to shy away from the conversation.
Of course, few people will want to talk about their own death, or potential catastrophic ill-health and losing mental capacity.
But you cannot get past the reality of life and how it moves on and eventually ends.
It’s far better to be in the best possible position, to deal with all manner of life events and death, rather than potentially leaving both you and your families in a terrible position, should the worst happen sooner than expected.
