Adding Estate Planning to Your IFA Practice: The Complete Guide

As an IFA, you review your clients' investments, pensions, and protection. You ensure their assets grow and are protected. But there's a glaring gap in most IFA practices: what happens to those assets when the client dies or loses capacity?

The reality for most IFA clients:

• •You've built them a £500,000 portfolio — but they have no will directing where it goes
• •You've set up drawdown pensions — but no expression of wish or bypass trust
• •You've recommended life insurance — but it's not in trust, so it'll be taxed and delayed
• •You've planned for retirement — but no LPAs in case they lose capacity before then

Why this matters to YOUR business:

• •If your client dies intestate, their assets might not reach the people you planned for
• •Without LPAs, you can't manage their portfolio if they lose capacity
• •Their family might blame you: "Why didn't our financial advisor mention this?"
• •Consumer Duty arguably requires you to consider these outcomes

The opportunity:

• •Fill this gap and you provide genuinely holistic planning
• •Revenue per client increases by £500-£2,500+ per engagement
• •Clients perceive more value from your overall service
• •Differentiation from other IFAs who only do investments and pensions
• •Deeper client relationships that generate more referrals

This isn't about becoming a different kind of business. It's about completing the service you already provide.

You don't need to offer everything immediately. Start with the services that complement your existing IFA work most naturally:

Start here (immediate fit with IFA work):

1. Life insurance trust wrappers — If you place protection, you should be putting it in trust. Simple, quick, and high-value for clients. Fee: £150-£300 per trust.

2. Basic wills — Every client needs one. Your financial knowledge means you can draft better wills than generic will writers. Fee: £200-£500 per person.

3. LPAs — Without these, you can't manage a client's investments if they lose capacity. Essential for every IFA client over 50. Fee: £300-£600 per pair.

Add next (higher value):

4. IHT-focused wills with trust provisions — Nil-rate band trusts, life interest trusts, discretionary trusts. Fee: £500-£1,500 per couple.

5. Property protection trusts — For clients with property assets. Fee: £500-£1,500.

6. Pension death benefit planning — Expression of wish, bypass trusts, spousal bypass. Fee: £300-£800.

Advanced (premium service):

7. Full estate planning packages — Comprehensive IHT review + wills + LPAs + trusts. Fee: £2,000-£5,000.

8. Business succession planning — Shareholder protection, buy/sell, key person. Fee: £1,500-£5,000.

9. Agricultural/business property relief planning — Specialist niche. Fee: £2,000-£5,000+.

Start with items 1-3, learn the process, build confidence, then expand into the premium services where your IFA expertise really shines.

Your annual client review is the perfect moment to introduce estate planning. Here's how to make it natural:

Add to your review agenda:

After covering investments, pensions, and protection, add a 5-minute estate planning section:

"Before we finish, I want to touch on something that completes the picture. We've made sure your assets are growing and protected. But I want to check: do you have a will that reflects your current situation? And do you have LPAs in place in case you ever need someone to manage things for you?"

Common responses and how to handle them:

"I've been meaning to get around to it..."

→ "Most people say that! The good news is I can now help with this directly. Shall I book a separate appointment to go through it? It's usually about an hour and I can have everything drafted within a week."

"We did wills years ago..."

→ "Great that you have something in place. When were they last reviewed? If it's been more than 3-5 years, or if anything's changed — property, grandchildren, beneficiaries — it's worth updating. I can review them for you."

"What does it cost?"

→ "For a couple, mirror wills plus LPAs — which I'd strongly recommend — is typically [£800-£1,400]. Given the value of your estate, it's a small investment to make sure everything is protected. And unlike most firms, I understand your complete financial picture, so the documents will be comprehensive."

"We use a solicitor for that..."

→ "That's absolutely fine. If you're happy with them, keep using them. I mention it because many of my clients find it easier having everything with one person who understands their finances. And I'm typically 30-50% cheaper than solicitors for the same work. But no pressure — just wanted you to know it's available."

Let's model the impact on a typical IFA practice:

Scenario: 200-client IFA practice

Without estate planning:

• •Average revenue per client: £1,500/year (ongoing fees + new business)
• •Total practice revenue: £300,000/year

With estate planning added:

• •Estate planning conversion rate: 30% of clients = 60 clients
• •Average EP case value: £900 (mix of basic and complex)
• •Additional EP revenue: £54,000/year
• •Plus review/update revenue (years 2+): £10,000-£20,000/year

Total revenue increase: £54,000-£74,000+ per year

But the real value is deeper:

1. Client retention improves — Clients with wills through you are 40% less likely to leave for another IFA

2. Referral rate increases — Clients refer more when they see you as a complete service

3. Higher-quality introductions — Estate planning clients tend to refer higher-net-worth contacts

4. Probate opportunity — When your client dies, their family comes to YOU for probate (additional £2,000-£5,000+ per case)

5. Next-generation capture — Meeting beneficiaries through estate planning leads to managing their finances too

The compound effect: Estate planning doesn't just add revenue — it transforms your practice into a deeper, stickier, more referral-rich business. The £54,000 in direct fees is just the beginning.

Our free training and WILLO software are designed to slot into your existing IFA practice with minimal disruption.

Training around your IFA work:

• •8 modules completed at your own pace
• •Evening and weekend study works perfectly
• •Most IFAs finish in 3-4 weeks (your financial knowledge accelerates learning)
• •Focus your study time on will drafting and LPA process (the legal specifics)
• •Skip or skim the financial modules (you know this already)

WILLO integrates with your IFA workflow:

• •Capture estate planning information during the same client review
• •Draft documents between IFA review meetings
• •Professional output that matches your practice standards
• •Client files alongside your existing records
• •Secure document sharing with clients

How it works in practice:

1. During annual review, identify estate planning needs (5 minutes)

2. Book a separate EP appointment (60-90 minutes)

3. Use WILLO fact-find to capture details

4. Draft documents using WILLO templates (30-60 minutes)

5. Present to client for signing (30 minutes)

6. File and close — total additional time per client: 3-4 hours

ROI calculation:

• •Your time: 3-4 hours per EP case
• •Revenue: £500-£2,500 per case
• •Effective hourly rate: £125-£625/hour for EP work
• •Compare to your effective hourly rate for IFA work (often lower once compliance time is factored in)

Register for free training at Become an Estate Planner. Your financial expertise means you're already halfway there — our training fills in the legal and practical specifics, and WILLO gives you the tools to deliver professionally from day one.