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| Case Studies - Case Studies |
Summary:We helped a couple deal with the implications of a serious illness to the husband. We saw them through the process of re-assessing their financial situation, making claims to various insurance companies and putting their future finances on a secure footing. Background:An existing client developed a serious illness which was debilitating and therefore meant that he would no longer be able to work. They needed to manage their income situation and to determine whether this change in their circumstances would impact on their future financial security. Problems/Challenges:Initially their main problem was one of income since the husband’s illness prevented him from working. They needed to re-assess their expenditure to find ways to address this situation. Previously the husband had handled all the family finances which meant that the wife had only a limited knowledge of their existing provisions. We needed to work with her to understand the implications of the changes to their lifestyle, and also to help her to take control of their future financial directions. Luckily the clients had previously set up a number of insurance policies to cover against this kind of eventuality. However they needed help to present their claims to the relevant insurance companies so that they would receive a favourable hearing and also to help them manage the claim process through what was obviously a stressful period. Our approach:We started off by working with the clients to establish their existing situation and to create a realistic idea of how things would change in the future. This meant taking a pragmatic view as to the husband’s prognosis and also how his condition may deteriorates over time. Once we had understood their situation we were able to develop a financial plan which would assess how their finances would be affected by the change to their circumstances. In this plan we were able to examine various scenarios, for example examining the effect on their finances of possible future care fees. We were able to work with the clients to generate alternative income sources to help them to pay off debts accrued during the husband’s illness. We also helped them to liaise with the husband’s pension companies to take his retirement income early. This helped them to solve their short term income problems. We helped the clients to present their insurance claims in a way which gave them the best chance to achieve a favourable response. We were also able to handle the claim process so that they were kept up to date with the progress of their claims. Finally we worked with the client to set up investments to provide a growth strategy towards future income needs and the possible funding of care fees. Outcomes and Impact:The clients were able to alleviate their initial income problems by re arranging their existing assets. We helped them to make important decisions about their future income and the structure of their financial needs. We presented their insurance claim in a straightforward way and dealt with all the paperwork, resulting in a number of successful lump sum payouts. We helped them to create a solid base for their finances so that they could feel secure no matter what happened. Finally we helped them to arrange their investments so that they could achieve income and have the flexibility to withdraw money as needed. All this was done with a focus on taking very low risk while maintaining their future lifestyle needs. Continuing Support:Each year we schedule two reviews with the clients. The first is to re-evaluate their financial situation and revise their financial plan so that we can take into account any changes to their circumstances and re-assess whether they remain on target to meet their long-term goals. The second meeting reviews the clients’ investment portfolio and aims to keep it on track towards its goals while taking the least risk needed to do so. Further information: |
