“Simon* wanted this video game for Christmas and he plays it all the time, but if someone had told him it costs £2,000 he’d have given them the money straight away.”
The clients who said this to me a couple of years ago, popped into my head this morning.
This couple had three children, the youngest of whom was Simon (not his real name). Simon suffers Down’s Syndrome and though he does have reasonable mental capacity, he had little understanding of the value of money and thus was vulnerable to exploitation. Someone looking to exploit Simon would be delighted to learn that he had inherited £100,000 in unrestricted funds, and immediately seek to con him out of it.
In the couple’s Wills, we split the children’s inheritance three ways, with Simon’s older sisters receiving theirs immediately when both parents died. Simon’s share will be placed in a trust under his sisters’ control, so they can provide money as and when he needs it, for luxuries of course as well as necessities.
So that’s Simon’s money protected from less scrupulous individuals. The other benefit of using a trust to protect Simon’s inheritance is that this will not affect any means-tested benefits he may be receiving at the time, and thus the money he inherits can be used to improve his quality of life.
If you or anybody you know needs to use a Will to protect a vulnerable child’s inheritance, get in touch.
Lakes Wills Ltd
07795661719