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InsightsResource - Trusts - POSTED: December 7 2016
Personal Injury Trust
Creating a Personal Injury Trust allows your compensation following a personal injury to be disregarded in any financial assessments for means-tested benefits. For more information contact Christopher Eriksson-Lee.
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What is a Personal Injury Trust?
A Personal Injury Trust is a legal arrangement that removes your compensation from being included in financial assessments. The trust must be managed by a minimum of two trustees who have the responsibility of overseeing the compensation in the trust. The trustees have the power to release money from the trust.
Why should I create a Personal Injury Trust?
If you are in receipt of means-tested benefits, then you should consider creating a Personal Injury Trust. The damages held within the trust are disregarded when assessing how much capital the injured person owns.
If you do not create a Personal Injury Trust and simply take the compensation as a lump sum then you may lose your entitlement to claim means-tested benefits now or in the future.
Who can be my trustees?
Your trustees can be anyone living in the UK, over the age of 18. It is important to appoint people who know you well and that you fully trust. We recommend appointing family members, close friends and or a professional.
Who can benefit from the trust?
People that benefit from the trust are known as ‘beneficiaries’. Depending on the type of trust you create and your circumstances, a number of people can benefit. The most common beneficiary is the injured person and normally they are treated as the main person to benefit from the trust.
If you would like other family members such as children/spouses to benefit from the trust, along with the injured person then this is also possible.
What will it cost to create a Personal Injury Trust?
Our fees will depend on the type of trust that you require. We deal with costs in one of two ways by either agreeing a fixed fee or dealing with costs on a time spent basis.
Our fees are usually deducted from the compensation before they are settled into the trust.
How do I create a Personal Injury Trust?
If you would like to discuss setting up a Personal Injury Trust or wish to obtain further information, please do not hesitate to contact our Private Client team.
Downloadable Files
Download the file on Personal Injury Trust Fact Sheet
Download the file on Trust Management Services Fact Sheet
This content is correct at time of publication
Can we help?
Take a look at our Trusts page for useful information, resources, guidance, details of our team and how we may be able to help you
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