When someone dies, two clocks start: probate and IHT. The tax is usually due by the end of the sixth month after death, and interest applies after that, often before probate completes. If much of the estate is tied up in property or other illiquid assets, raising cash fast can be stressful and disruptive.

A practical solution is life insurance structured for IHT: it doesn’t reduce the tax due, but it can provide the lump sum to pay it, so your family doesn’t need to sell a home, a long-term investment, or a sentimental asset at the worst possible moment.

From 6 April 2027, most unused pension funds and death benefits will be brought into scope of Inheritance Tax (IHT) and counted in the estate on death. The government has also confirmed that death-in-service benefits will be excluded, and that personal representatives (executors), not pension scheme administrators, will handle any IHT reporting and payment on pension death benefits.

As the UK faces the biggest intergenerational wealth transfer in history, many high-net-worth families are asking the same question:

“How can we pass down wealth without paying unnecessary Inheritance Tax?”

The recent, tragic news that Liam Payne, former member of One Direction, passed away without a will is not only deeply sad — it also highlights the importance of proactive estate planning, particularly for individuals with children or complex financial affairs