Available immediately, the discretionary probate trust can be used with the Sterling investment bond and is aimed at single settlors who wish to establish a trust but retain the right to benefit from the trust property. On the settlor’s death, the benefits of the plan are held in trust and can be paid to the beneficiaries without the delay that would arise from the need to obtain a grant of probate or letters of administration on the estate.
This trust is not designed to be an inheritance tax solution, although Zurich provides a wide range of trusts designed to mitigate any potential inheritance tax liability and this new trust sits alongside those.
Paul Wright, Zurich’s investment management director, commented: The discretionary probate trust is designed to speed up the process of distributing an estate by negating the need to apply for probate in respect of the money in the trust. This is designed to be a simple trust solution, aimed to make lives easier for loved ones at such a difficult time. We believe that advisers and customers will find this to be a very useful addition to our current trust range.
