Keeping your financial future secure
Advice and assistance from our serious injury solicitors does not stop once you have received compensation. Once you have received settlement it is imperative that you manage your money in such a way as to ensure that your personal and financial interests are secured.
Personal injury trusts
A personal injury trust allows funds from a compensation settlement to be held in a different way to the usual form of ownership and means the money can be held on behalf of a beneficiary (the injured person) and managed by a trustee or trustees.
Where appropriate it is usually advisable for claimants to set up a personal injury trust as soon as reasonably possible – most typically within twelve months of a compensation payout.
Trusts are useful because they can ensure that funds remain in the control of claimants but with certain conditions attached to usage – for example, trustees must agree that the claimant has good reason for withdrawing funds before he or she does so.
Trusts can work in many ways. Not only can they be advantageous in terms of taxation, they may also help claimants ensure they remain eligible to receive certain benefits. Of course, the main attraction of a personal injury trust is its ability to help safeguard the claimant's financial future.
When to set up a personal injury trust
If you have suffered a severe injury and are likely to receive a significant amount of compensation, then it's always best to talk to Thompsons as soon as you can so that we can help you receive the fullest compensation for your injuries.
If you have received a compensation settlement in the last 52 weeks and are now unsure how to manage the money, we can help you set up a personal injury trust so that you can keep your means-tested benefits or Universal Credit.
Ideally, the personal injury trust should be set up as soon as you know that compensation will be coming to you, or your family member, but there is a 52-week grace period and during this time any funds received will not be included for the purposes of the means-test. If you receive an interim payment, the 52-week period will start as soon as you receive the funds.
What is a personal injury trustee?
A personal Injury trustee is a person who has the authority to deal with the money or property held in the trust and they are duty-bound to act in the best interests of the beneficiary.
The trust can be set up in a number of ways to provide beneficiary rights in respect of the trust's property, and the beneficiary of a personal injury trust may hold all three of the major roles in a trust:
- Settlor – the person who puts the funds into trust
- Trustee – a person who manages the handling of the funds
- Beneficiary – the person who receives money (benefit) from the trust
However, in this situation there will need to be at least one other trustee or the trust would be invalid.
There are a number of strict rules about the use and setting up of a personal injury trust, so it's always best to get advice from experienced solicitors who can help ensure the trust is set up properly and in the way that will help keep the beneficiary as financially secure as possible.
Talk to Thompsons
Thompsons Solicitors can offer financial advice and assistance to make sure that you make the most of the compensation you receive and that it lasts as long as possible. Our solicitors can help by:
- Setting up a personal injury trust
- Arranging free impartial financial advice
- Will writing service
