New research has found not enough women know enough about the tools available to protect their wealth

A YouGov survey of 501 women with investible assets of over £100k commissioned by law firm Irwin Mitchell found that 63% do not have a Lasting Power of Attorney in place.

The research also revealed that the women questioned have tried to educate themselves about financial independence, particularly around Wills (55%) and pensions (52%), but only 20% had learned about Tax Planning.

Respondents were most confident about making decisions on their savings (70%) and the least confident about the use of Trusts in protecting wealth (4%). Around a third of women were confident they knew about Lasting Power of Attorneys (LPAs) (35%) and Wills (31%) but less understood Pensions (26%) and retirement planning (20%).

Expert Opinion

“Taking proper and full advice on Power of Attorneys (LPAs) is absolutely vital. Without an LPA in place, no-one, including a spouse or civil partner, has any authority to make decisions on your behalf if you become unable to manage your own financial decisions and personal welfare. Making an LPA affords you the choice of who makes these important financial and personal decisions on your behalf and who will act in your best interests to do so.

“Those asked in our survey had views on who they would want as their Attorney, so don’t leave it to chance on who acts for you. Your choice of attorney is crucial, different people have different skills, some might be more suited to financial assistance and others to welfare decisions. It’s important to take advice on your LPAs to ensure these are in place, that you have covered all eventualities, that you understand the important role attorneys undertake to the most suitable people are appointed as attorneys.

“The Government are introducing digital LPAs which may encourage more people to make LPAs. However, it still advisable to take advise on the LPAs to ensure you fully understand the documents before creating and signing these.

“It's also important to have a Will in place, 60% of people don’t have Wills. Without a Will your estate passes under the law, known as the intestacy rules. You might not be able to protect and pass on your wealth to those that you want to benefit. For example, cohabitees are not protected under the Intestacy laws as legally there is no such concept as a ‘common law spouse’ and therefore the only way to provide for a non-married partner is by having a correctly drafted will in place. Having a Will and LPAs in place and taking advise on effective tax planning are all key to protecting your well-earned assets and wealth.” Nicola Hawkins, Lifestyle and Estate Planning Partner

Irwin Mitchell have recently launched a women-led initiative called “The Female Voice” which aims to bring women together from professional networks and beyond. The firm was recently named in the top 20 best workplaces for women in the UK and were the only law firm on the list. 53% of Irwin Mitchell partners are women, which is almost double the industry average.