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28 Apr 2022 | 3 min read
Business Relief (BR) qualifying investments are very popular with advisers and investors as the investments are free of Inheritance Tax (IHT) liability after two years, much quicker than other estate planning solutions. Whilst this is appealing, an investor still has a two year wait for the investment to become BR-qualifying.
To address this problem, insurance cover has been available in the market for several years as an optional extra to protect against IHT liability during the two year qualifying period. A relatively small proportion of investors take up the option of paying for this protection, but many do not as the cost of the insurance significantly erodes investment returns. These investors prefer to wait the two years out and avoid the cost of insurance cover.
This is an understandable and typical reaction to a discretionary insurance purchase which we often make in our day to day lives if we feel the cost outweighs the risk. However, when the consequences of the event being insured can be significant, and life changing, we tend to think differently and happily put cover in place, such as home insurance. A BR investment is no different. Whilst an investor may not believe they are likely to die in the two year qualifying period, it might happen. Nothing is certain after all, other than death and taxes, the two things under the spotlight here! And, if the investor were to die in this two year qualifying period, the consequences for their beneficiaries would indeed be significant with 40% of their estate reduced via IHT, something which most people would want to avoid happening to their beneficiaries.
That’s why we developed IEP Apex, the only BR-qualifying investment with complimentary insurance cover as standard. IEP Apex gives investors and their beneficiaries peace of mind immediately following share allotment that any IHT arising in the first two years will be settled by the insurance policy, for no extra cost to the investor. No hard decisions, no trade-offs, just peace of mind from day one following share allotment.
Given the potential consequences, why would your clients wait two years for their investment to become BR-qualifying when they don’t have to?
How does it work?
The insurance policy is designed to settle the IHT liability arising in the two years post share allotment if the investor dies within this time. In year three, the investment should qualify for Business Relief as normal so it becomes IHT-exempt. It’s really that simple.
Why should you recommend it to your clients?
IEP Apex is a new type of BR-qualifying service. It is unique in that, to the best of our knowledge, no other BR-qualifying service provides complimentary insurance cover as standard to pay for the IHT liability arising if the investor dies in the first two years post investment. The insurance cover is integrated as part of the investment service. It’s simple and straightforward – there are no examinations or complicated forms, no need to assess by how much the cost of adding insurance will erode performance. Just a simple health declaration as part of the easy application process, and investors’ IHT liabilities are covered in case the worst happens in the first two years post investment.
But that’s not all IEP Apex provides. Beyond peace of mind, IEP Apex offers investors:
The IEP Apex peace of mind
At any stage of life, IEP Apex protects investors and their beneficiaries from the consequences of their estates being reduced by 40% in the two year BR-qualifying period. Why should investors wait two years for their investments to qualify for BR when they can be covered immediately following share allotment?
IEP Apex has your clients covered, just in case.
