The research by Canada Life suggests that over half of UK adults have not named anyone in their expression of wishes. 

“I don’t want to jinx things” 

I can't tell you how often I have this conversation with potential clients. 

 

Usually, it has to do with getting a will in place, but it can also be when I ask them to name the beneficiaries of their pension if they die. It seems to make people nervous, which we all know is silly but it affects millions of people who are not naming their inheritors. 

 

The research by Canada Life suggests that over half of UK adults have not named anyone in their expression of wish and if they have, it’s often not up to date. 

 

I can give examples of cases where I have an initial meeting and we have discussed the expression of wishes. We then meet up again for a later review and I ask them the same question again. Often, they are no longer married to the person, have outlived the person they originally named or even they named a girlfriend at the time and ended the relationship and not updated the paperwork. 

 

It may sound incredible, as so many of these pension pots will now be worth a few quid; therefore, this information must be kept up to date. 

The other thing to consider is the impact this has on expediency. Not naming your inheritors will extend the period the pension may take to be released, or in some cases not released!! 

 

As part of our compliance, every pension must have at least one person nominated. As an adviser, I would be checking that this person is still current in your life as part of our review process. 

 

Take a few minutes today to make sure you have the correct person named and they are the person you would want to inherit your hard-earned pension! Get the right money, into the right hands at the right time.