GIFTS IN WILLS

No, you are more than welcome to leave us a gift in your Will through your lawyer or another Will provider.

The reason that we have partnered with Footprint is so that we can offer you a FREE Will, potentially saving you thousands of dollars. Check out the offer here.

If you choose to use Footprint’s online Will builder (and our offer of a FREE Will), it is totally safe to do it online.

All information that is passed between Footprint and you (including the online Will service), is authenticated, and encrypted using 2048-bit Secure Socket Layer encryption. They use Cloudflare to provide this service. This means that if your data or information were to be intercepted on its way to Footprint, then it would be completely unintelligible. The internet browser shows a padlock in the address bar before the website address meaning the information is securely encrypted.

Most lawyers use Will templates and populate their customer’s information into it. Footprint does the same. Their platform was built by lawyers and provides solicitor approved, legally valid Wills and each Will is reviewed by professional Will drafters.

There are times when complex situations need a consultation which is why they work with Perpetual Guardian (see next section).

If Footprint’s online Will builder identifies that your situation requires a complex Will, they will refer you to their third-party provider, Perpetual Guardian, for a phone consultation.

Perpetual Guardian will advise of any fees and charges before you embark on the process with them. You can learn more about their Services, fees and charges here.

Once you have submitted your Will to Footprint, it will take 2-3 working days for your Will to be drafted and uploaded back for your review.

You will receive an email notification once it is ready to be downloaded.

We encourage you to check your Will to ensure it reflects your wishes correctly.

Footprint will send you an email confirming your Will is ready to be downloaded. This email will also include a checklist for you to follow to ensure your Will is legally valid.

It is vital that you follow the checklist and complete the next steps in getting your Will signed and witnessed.

You can view the checklist here on our Info Hub blog: Checklist to signing your Footprint Will.

Once Footprint has drafted your Will, you will be advised to log into your Footprint account and review its contents.

You can then download a copy, print it single-sided, and sign it.

Signing your Will requires two witnesses who are not named in your Will as beneficiaries and who are over the age of 18.

You and your witnesses will need to initial each page. Following the instructions exactly is super important as missing a step can make your Will invalid.

For further information on how to sign and witness your Will, download our helpful checklist to Signing your Footprint Will.

The Footprint platform not only provides a legally valid online Will but is also provides exclusive discounts and offers.

You can find out more directly from your platform. The current offers include services provided by Perpetual
Guardian at discounted rates:

• Enduring Power of Attorney – Property
• Enduring Power of Attorney – Personal Care and Welfare
• Setting up a Trust
• Trust Review

To see how these work in conjunction with a Will see the Info Hub blog What makes up a good estate plan.

No, Footprint Wills do not require Perpetual Guardian to be made executor.

During the Will creation process, customers have the option to select Perpetual Guardian, a family member/friend or anyone else they choose.

If you choose your own executor, you have the option to select Executor Support through Perpetual Guardian (see next section).

We know that 95% of friends and family who are chosen as executors seek professional support when administering the estate.

Many people don’t realise that as an executor they can be held financially liable should they make any
mistakes that negatively impact beneficiaries.

Perpetual Guardian offers a “Executor Support” service which is completely optional to your executor. They can select what tasks (if any) they would like help with. Any associated costs will be charged to your estate.

View Perpetual Guardian fees here.

The legal age to receive any inheritance in New Zealand is 18 years old. If you leave anything to anyone under this age (for example any young grandchildren, or nieces and nephews) it’ll be held for them by the trustee of your Will.

However, this money is still available before the age of 18 for certain things like child support or education etc.

The answer is “yes, but …”.

Yes, it’s legal to have an executor who’s also a beneficiary in your Will.

But Footprint think it’s a good idea to keep the beneficiaries of your estate and your executor separate – just in case your Will is challenged as it could be seen as a conflict of interest.

But it is your call.

It’s a common misconception that only one Will needs to exist between two people.

Within New Zealand, your Will is seen as an individual list of wishes, which means you and you partner need to write your own Wills, even if you have the same wishes.

Nothing stops you from writing your Wills together to reiterate the same wishes and essentially mirroring your partner’s Will, or vice versa.

Certainly, when you use Footprint’s online Will builder to leave a gift in your Will, you will be asked in the ‘Declaration’ section of the Will builder if you would like to share details of your gift with the charities. If you choose not to share your details with the intending charities, then the charities only receive any non-identifiable ‘collective data’.

What is collective data?

Collective data is non-identifiable total data that is made up of known and unknown intended gifts i.e number of people that have left a bequest in their Will or a running total of monetary gifts etc. Data is only provided to a charity once it is non-identifiable.

Footprint does not proactively reach out to your listed charities to inform them of your intended gift to them.

Where permission has been given, charities may receive reporting that would advise them when a gift has been left and the charity can then reach out to you in the future to thank you.

Your Will contains private and personal information. Details of a persons intending gift/bequest will only be shared with the charity if the user explicitly agrees to it. It’s important to carefully review and understand the terms and conditions provided by Footprint and the charity.

Adventure Specialties Trust:

Tim Wills, CEO (tim@adventurespecialties.co.nz)

Bex, Gifts in Wills programme coordinator (comms@adventurespecialties.co.nz) 

Footprint online Will provider:

info@myfootprint.co.nz
0800 366 877
Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm