It is important to have a Will in place to not only ensure that your assets pass to the appropriate people that you wish to inherit from your estate, but also because it provides your family with guidance during what is a stressful and upsetting time. However, the concern that is becoming more prevalent in modern times is what happens to your online assets when you pass away?

People often do not account for their online assets when preparing their Will which is important in modern day society as more and more institutions are choosing to hold your assets (like investments, policies, plans etc) online. It is important that details relative to your online assets are made available to allow the executor (who is given the responsibility to attend to the proper administration of your estate) to allow them to attend to such assets when you are no longer here. It is also important because if such information is not made readily available, assets, where money is due to be credited to the estate, may not be able to be located and therefore the money is then lost.

It is important to provide to the executor your security details for any online assets that you may have to allow them to deal with them effectively and efficiently. It may be useful to contact each institution that you hold online assets with to allow your executor authority to access your accountant upon your passing. The alternative may be that you leave with your Will an accompanying letter that notes the relevant details they will require which would be kept in our safe with your Will for safe keeping.

The role of an executor is one that comes with a lot of responsibility and although the law provides some protection where possible, it is not fool proof. We would always recommend appointing someone that you know and trust.

You may wish to consider appointing someone within your Will who has the responsibility of dealing with only your online assets. By appointing one executor to deal with only your physical assets and another executor to deal with your online assets, this will allow the responsibility to be spread across both executors as one may be more suited to attend to your online estate as they may be more confident and familiar with using technology.

This may not have been an issue you had considered until reading this post however it is something that is becoming increasingly more common. We recommend having a discussion with one of our experts within this field who will be able to advise further. Please contact us on 01292 281711 to arrange an appointment and we shall be pleased to assist.