Canada is in the middle of the largest wealth transfer in history, and with an aging population and a global pandemic that highlighted that the unexpected can happen anytime, it’s no surprise that Canadians have prioritized estate planning like never before.
When we think of financial planning, our minds might not immediately jump to estate planning — but we spend nearly our entire lives building wealth, so it’s imperative that we pass it on efficiently to the people we choose. According to our research at Willful, 57% of Canadian adults don’t have a will, and that number jumps to almost 90% amongst people 35 and under. Of those who do have wills, 1-in-10 are out of date.
As estate planning has become more top of mind for Canadians, it’s also become more top of mind for financial institutions, financial planning firms, and fintechs who are helping Canadians prioritize getting their will and other aspects of their estate plan done while also encouraging them to keep their plans up-to-date. Here are some examples of how companies are helping Canadians fill the gap in their estate plans:
Filling the knowledge gap
Estate planning isn’t something most of us discussed at the dinner table or learned about in school, which means the majority of folks have questions about the basics. Questions like… What is a will? What’s the difference between a will and a power of attorney document? Why do I need these documents and what happens if I don’t have them? And when should I prioritize getting them? As with complex topics like investing, the key is to start with education.
In 2022, CIBC partnered with our team at Willful to empower retail banking clients with key information about estate planning, and to provide access to create their estate plans online. This education has included PR campaigns, educational content in customer emails, and education within CIBC’s portal. Many FIs and financial planning firms have in-house experts on estate planning, so their content can complement a call to action to get their documents completed affordably online.
Helping people through key life moments
Most people are driven to create a will and other estate planning documents after going through a major life change — mainly having a child, buying a home, and getting married (or divorced). A financial advisor is the best person to know when someone’s life is changing, and they can play a key role in educating clients around these life moments. An example being: highlighting the importance of adding a guardian in your will when a child is born.
At Willful we’ve partnered with financial planning firms like PEAK Financial Group, and with financial institutions like ATB Financial bank in Alberta, to empower their financial advisors. This means holding live will-writing workshops with their clients, creating content to share with clients focused around key life changes and what they need to know, and providing branded Willful experiences that help clients check it off their list.
Financial advisors talk about wills and estate planning in early meetings with their clients, but often struggle to move them to action. Recommending accessible and easy-to-use online tools, whether that’s for legal documents or digital life insurance options like PolicyMe, can help to close the loop.
Helping power the back office
Financial services companies are not just embracing customer-facing partnerships, they’re also working with software companies that streamline organizing client information and the estate administration process. For example, Montreal-based Estateably is a B2B platform that works directly with trust companies, law firms, and professional executors to help them manage estate settlement. Many FIs have trust divisions that allow the bank to act as the executor of an estate, so it’s likely that more of them will embrace software tools like Estateably to streamline internal processes.
Another example is ReadyWhen, a B.C.-based company founded by a notary public that helps financial planning companies and other firms organize estate planning content for clients, so they can store all client documents in one place. This benefits the client and their family, and also ensures that the financial advisor has a line of sight into what information they are missing in their plan.
Acting as a trusted advisor on key industry changes
While some FIs have in-house estate planning experts, many don’t, which means they may not always be aware of key legislative and industry changes. COVID-19 spurred the most change in wills and estates in 100 years, and it’s important to educate customers and clients about these changes.
For example, in 2021, British Columbia became the first province to allow fully digital wills — this means residents can electronically sign their will, get together with witnesses over video conference, and even store a copy of their will online (instead of a physical paper copy). Saskatchewan will soon become the second province to allow fully digital wills, and other provinces likely aren’t far behind. And in many provinces, the pandemic spurred laws allowing virtual witnessing of wills, which means witnesses don’t have to get together in person.
Yet how many financial services companies were aware of these changes, or educated their clients about it?
Partnering with industry experts can be a great way to stay ahead of the curve on these legislative changes, and to ensure customers have the most up-to-date information. At Willful, we send a monthly newsletter to our partners educating them about changes, which they can then incorporate into their own materials. We also have regular training sessions with staff at partner companies so they are aware of upcoming changes.
With a fast-moving estate planning landscape, and a customer base that’s hungry for education and affordable tools, it’s never been a better time to form partnerships with companies that are bringing the estate planning experience online.
Erin Bury is the co-founder and CEO at digital estate planning company Willful, which has helped tens of thousands of Canadians create their estate plans since launching in 2017. Willful is also the only online will provider with a conditional license from the Law Society of Ontario.
Photo by Nick Morrison on Unsplash
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