More people relying on you, in more directions
A blended family can include your children, your partner's children, children you have together and an ex-partner who receives or pays maintenance. Each of them might lose something if you died, and they would not all be in the same household when it happens.
Start by listing who you support today and how. Some of that is housing and food under your roof. Some may be a monthly transfer to another home. Both need a plan.
Your partner may bring their own policies and wills into the mix. Sit down together and share what each of you already has. Gaps and overlaps show up quickly once both sets of paperwork are on the table.
Stepchildren and the law
Under the intestacy rules in England and Wales, stepchildren have no automatic share of your estate unless you have adopted them. Many step-parents assume otherwise and leave the children they have raised for years with nothing.
A will fixes this for your estate. A life policy written in trust fixes it for the payout, and works faster, because trustees can act without waiting for probate.
Adoption changes the legal position, so a stepchild you have adopted inherits in the same way as a birth child. Many blended families never adopt, which makes a will and trusts all the more important.
Ring-fencing money for each part of the family
One large policy left to your new partner relies on them passing money on to your children from an earlier relationship. Most people trust their partner, but circumstances change. They may remarry or simply face pressures you cannot foresee.
Two or three smaller policies, each in its own trust, let you set aside a sum for your partner and the mortgage and a separate sum for the children from your first relationship. Each pot has its own trustees and its own purpose.
Family income benefit is useful here because it pays monthly rather than in one sum. Trustees can pass a regular amount to the household where each child lives.
- A policy for the shared home and your partner
- A policy for children from a previous relationship
- Family income benefit to replace maintenance you pay
- Different trustees for each pot if that avoids conflict
Choosing trustees who can work together
Your trustees will decide how and when money is paid. In a blended family, think about whether your partner and your ex-partner would co-operate as trustees. Sometimes a sibling or close friend is a calmer choice for one of the trusts.
Write a letter of wishes to sit alongside each trust. It is not binding, but it tells trustees what you had in mind for each child.
How Hi Tomorrow helps blended families
We map out the family with you, including children in other homes, and suggest how to split cover so each person is looked after. We compare insurers on our panel for the most suitable mix and set up each trust as part of the application.
If you are unsure about the legal side, such as adoption or wills, we will suggest you speak to a solicitor alongside us.
We explain each trust in plain language and give you a written summary of who would receive what. That summary is a useful thing to keep with your will.