Estate planning and insurance – who gets what
EducationArticle5 June 2023
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Estate planning and insurance – who gets what
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There is a trick to making sure your superannuation and life insurance proceeds go where you want them to.
Death isn’t a dinner table conversation for most people. But giving absolutely no thought to what happens after you’re gone could have a big effect on those closest to you.
If you’re suddenly not around, could your partner afford to maintain the same lifestyle? Could they still retire when they intended to? Could they afford to keep the family home?
It’s true that having life insurance through your super fund is an easy, cost-effective way to protect your family’s financial situation. But the proceeds from your superannuation and life insurance don’t automatically form part of your estate after you die.
If you want your loved ones to receive everything you intend them to, you’ll need to do a bit of planning.
Estate planning and insurance
An estate asset is one that automatically becomes part of your estate when you die. This means it will be handed over according to your will. It can include things such as money you have in bank accounts, any shares and bonds you own, real estate properties, and other items such as jewellery, artworks or vehicles.
However, money held in super, and proceeds from your life insurance held through super, are non-estate assets. That’s because your super is legally considered to be held in trust until you’re eligible to access it.
Any payout from life insurance held through super goes into your super account, as your super fund is the legal owner of the policy.
Yes, that may seem confusing. But the good news is that a non-estate asset can be passed on according to your wishes, so long as you have made specific arrangements to nominate a beneficiary or beneficiaries.
Who do you want to benefit?
Most super funds ask you to nominate a beneficiary, which is the person (or people) you’d like to receive the money in your super account if you die. An eligible beneficiary could be your partner or children, a financial dependant or your legal representative (the executor of your will or, if you don’t have a will, the administrator for your estate).
A binding nomination is legally valid and must be renewed every three years. It means the super fund has to pay your balance to whoever you nominated, so long as that nomination isn’t out of date and all the beneficiaries are still alive.
A non-binding nomination still tells the super fund who you’d like to get your super balance, and your fund will take notice of it. But it will also need to consider all relevant laws when making a decision.
Consult a professional
Estate laws can be complex, so it’s likely you’ll need professional help to get it right.
If you want to make sure your assets will be passed on exactly the way you want, consult both a financial adviser and an estate lawyer. And be sure to update your estate plan at least once every five years.
Leaving a clear, thorough, current will is one of the best ways you can care for your loved ones
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Do you need to update your beneficiaries?
If you want to change the nominated beneficiary on your insurance policy, get in touch. Give us a call on <<phone number>>, email us on <<email address>> or contact us through <<website address>> and we’ll let you know the next steps.
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“The proceeds from superannuation and life insurance don’t automatically form part of your estate after you die.”
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| Subject line | If you die, who will get your money? |
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| Pre-header text | You may not realise super and insurance payouts aren’t included in your estate |
| Header image copy | |
| Headline | You need to think about estate planning and insurance |
| Salutation | Dear <name> |
| Introduction | Death isn’t much of a dinner-table conversation, but giving no thought to what happens after you’re gone could make things even tougher on your loved ones. |
| Body | You may not realise that proceeds from your superannuation and life insurance don’t automatically form part of your estate if you die. That means you need to make specific arrangements to make sure they go to whom you want.
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| CTA | Learn more about estate planning, super and insurance <here>. |
| Sign-off | Regards, <name/team> |
| Disclaimer | <<disclaimer copy>> |
LinkedIn post
| Introduction | No-one likes to think about death, but failing to plan for your exit can have financially and emotionally disastrous effects. |
|---|---|
| Body | It might surprise you to learn that the proceeds from superannuation and life insurance don’t automatically form part of your estate. To make sure your super and insurance proceeds go where you want if you die, you need to nominate a beneficiary on your policy. Tax and estate laws are complex, so it’s important you consult a professional. You’ll need expert advice to make sure everything will go as you intend. |
| CTA | Find out more about insurance and estate planning <here>. |
Social post
| Introduction | If you die, who will get your money? |
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| Body | Death isn’t a great conversation starter. But giving no thought to what happens after you’re gone can cause financial and emotional distress for those you leave behind. That’s why it’s important to know what happens with your super and insurance payouts. |
| CTA | Click <here> to discover more about insurance and planning your estate. |
This information provides an overview only on specific topics and may be limited in scope or subject to qualifications and generalisations. It is provided for your use with insureds and superannuation fund members.
The information provided is also designed to be provided to insureds and superannuation fund members under your own name and any applicable licenses. You will need to consider whether the information is required to be changed or qualified in doing so. To the extent that there is inconsistency between the information on this website and the relevant policy, the policy will take precedence. You should take professional advice and review the appropriateness of the information before it is used by you.
This information does not consider any specific personal needs, objectives, or financial circumstances.
© Zurich Australia Limited ABN 92 000 010 195, AFSL 232510. Information within it is current as at May 2023 but may be subject to change. Updated information will be available by contacting Customer Service on 131 551.
