Benjamin 56 was a director in a telecommunication company in far away East Africa before he passed on in a London Hospital two weeks after involving in plane crash where he also lost his only child Bekai, on their way to the Islands for a one month vacation.
His wife Jeremy died much earlier following a protracted kidney problem which kept her in an Indian hospital for months before she eventually died, leaving her husband and their only child Bekai who was already working in research Institute in the country side, after his first degree in Statistics in a private university in London.
Benjamin, having acquired a lot of knowledge in financial management and also successful in his career had an estate plan in place for transfer of his wealth should the unexpected happen.
And as if he knew death would come to him suddenly, he had prepared a will to transfer his estate to his only child Bekai.
Unfortunately, death took him at the same time with his only son who also died on the same plane crash that took the life of Benjamin.
Bekai unfortunately did not inherit the estate that has been planned for him. But also not having a will in place, the Benjami’s estate is being contested by those who have no reason to near the estate and so may eventually become state property.
Binta Max-Gbinije, chief executive officer, Stanbic IBTC Trustees Limited, a member of Stanbic IBTC Holdings speaking at a Round Table Discussion on the Company’s latest product the “Lagacee’, otherwise called the Will said that estate planning through a Will is critical in achieving generational transfer of wealth.
Max-Gbinije said to avoid will failing as result of generational changes, like the case of the Benjamin’s, every one irrespective of age and worth of assets should have a will.
Everybody should have a will because it is the only way to guarantee that your wish is executed when you are no more, she stated.
Highlighting the benefits of a will, she said it ensures that assets of the deceased are distributed to beneficiaries according to the wishes of the deceased when he or she passes on.
She said there are two kinds of will service offered by the company – simple will service and comprehensive will.
She explained that the simple will covers the balance in a person’s Retirement Savings Account (RSA) and personal bank accounts irrespective of his or her Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) or bank, adding that the service is offered to individuals who would like to write their Wills to safeguard these assets.
Comprehensive Will, on the other hand, covers a person’s assets including real estate, cash in bank, shares, private companies and any other asset as determined.
Accidents, misfortunes, natural disasters and other unfortunate events happen every day and no one is completely shielded from these incidents. Since we cannot tell if and when such incidents will happen, wisdom dictates we make plans for such eventualities.
According to industry statistics, only 1 percent of learned Nigerians have a WILL in place, which means that many of us would be creating problem to our families and dependants should the unexpected occur today.
Make the plan today, be responsible by writing a WILL or set up a Trust so it is easier to know who your beneficiary is(are). Note that there is a difference between your Next-of-Kin (NOK) and your beneficiary (ies). Many people including pension contributors keep asking what age and at what point should somebody write a will. This article is intended to open the eyes of many who think ‘WILL’ is old people, rich people or those nearing retirement.
In simple terms, it is for everybody as long as you have asset or investment that you could transfer to a beneficiary or beneficiaries. Specifically, if you are contributing to pensions, this advice is for you.
The Nigeria Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) introduced by the Pension Reform Act recognises the importance of the contributor, his contribution and what happens to him while in employment. This is both alive and in death. With this realisation that there is life and there is also death, the CPS has taken care of the contributor, directly or indirectly, should either of the two happen as long as the person has made his contribution through his employer.
The law states that where an employee dies, his entitlements under the life insurance policy maintained in this Act shall be paid by an underwriter to the named beneficiary.
That, upon receipt of a valid Will admitted to probate or a Letter of Administration, confirming the beneficiaries under the estate of the deceased employee, the Pension Fund Administrator(PFA) shall, with the approval of the Commission, release the amount standing in the retirement savings account of the decease to the personal representative of the deceased or to any other person as may be directed by a court of competent jurisdiction, in accordance with the terms of the Will or the personal law of the deceased employee, as the case may be.
Modestus Anaesoronye
