After the sad death of her husband Ian, June inherited a number of funds and individual shares, as well as a number of fixed rate deposit accounts, some of which had been extended and were not offering a very good rate of return.
June did not have the knowledge or confidence to look after the investments herself and came to us looking for advice and support. She was receiving a number of dividends from the investments, but because these came in on an ad-hoc basis she was unsure how much she could spend going forward without running out of money. She also wanted to be able to make occasional gifts to her grandchildren and was considering purchasing a smaller car.
We collated a list of all her assets to see at-a-glance all that she had, and supported June to put together a budgeting plan so we could determine how much income she required for her to have financial security going forward. She didn’t want to take a high level of risk but did want her money to keep up with inflation and provide some real returns.
We advised June how much income she could expect, and how much she could gift without it impacting her future lifestyle and financial security. And then we consolidated her investments onto a single investment platform that helped simplify their management and provided an annual tax voucher which helped her complete her self-assessment return. As June did not need to take the level of risk she was currently taking, we rearranged her investments to better suit her more cautious approach.
Because of the change in her circumstances, we advised June that she would need to make a new will as her existing one was now out-of-date, and at the same time advised that she put in place a Lasting Power of Attorney in case she needed help making decisions in the future in the event of illness or loss of mental capacity.
We made sure she had sufficient money on deposit to cover emergencies and to cover the purchase of a smaller car and future gifts to the grandchildren, and we agreed to formally review her situation every year, but to remain on call at any time for advice and guidance.
The purpose of this case study is to provide technical and generic guidance and should not be interpreted as a personal recommendation or advice. Wills and Lasting Power of Attorneys are not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
