Britons Waste £1.5 billion in Inheritance Tax (Consumer)

Confidentially search for details of an independent financial tax advisor close to where you live or work from around 9,000 IFA locations UK-wide.

BRITONS WASTE £1.5 BILLION IN INHERITANCE TAX (Consumer)

•  UK tax payers waste more on IHT payments than any other tax
• Britons say the so called “death tax” is their second most resented tax
• However, almost three in four people (74%) have not taken any steps to reduce their overall tax payments

UK taxpayers are wasting millions of pounds due to poor IHT planning according to annual research* by Unbiased.co.uk, the website promoting the benefits of independent financial advice. The research shows that the overall amount of inheritance tax payments totalled £3.5 billion last year, including £1.5 billion in avoidable payments. The amount of wasted IHT payments has risen by 19 per cent compared to the previous year, equalling an increase of over £250 million.

Lack of IHT provision represents the biggest tax wastage in the UK and with house prices continuing to rise, this trend looks set to continue with more properties now valued at more than the current IHT nil rate threshold of £300,000 than ever before. Unbiased.co.uk’s research is part of its annual campaign, TaxAction, which aims to encourage people to think sensibly about how to avoid wasting money through paying unnecessary tax. The research shows that the main cause of “death tax” wastage is the inclusion in personal estates of the proceeds of life assurance policies, which if written in trust, would not be subject to inheritance tax.

Unbiased.co.uk’s research also shows that IHT is the second most resented tax amongst the British public, only beaten to the top spot by council tax. Despite this dislike, nearly three in four people (74 per cent) in the UK admit to not having taken any steps over the last twelve months to reduce their tax burden**.

The fastest way to tackle the amount of money wasted on unnecessary tax payments is by searching for an independent financial adviser in your area who specialises in giving tax planning advice.

David Elms, Chief Executive of Unbiased.co.uk, commented; “Our research shows that people are throwing away a huge amount of money on unnecessary inheritance tax payments. IHT liability is paid by beneficiaries, often at a time when they are grieving over a lost friend or family member. Without advanced tax planning, increasing amounts of IHT will fall into the hands of the tax man. It is crucial that people see an independent financial adviser to discuss their tax liabilities remembering that it is legal to mitigate inheritance tax. An IFA will ensure that all advice provided is appropriate for their client’s personal and family financial situation.”

With this in mind, Unbiased.co.uk has produced a brochure which explains what exactly Inheritance Tax is and how to minimise your liability. To download a free copy of the brochure and find details of local independent financial advisers (IFAs) who can advise on your IHT options, visit www.unbiased.co.uk/taketaxaction . Details of local IFAs are also available by calling Unbiased.co.uk’s hotline on 0800 085 3250.

-ends-

* TaxAction 2007 report produced for IFA Promotion by RAKM, based on a specially commissioned analysis of Inland Revenue and a range of other official data sources.

** Survey for IFA Promotion by YouGov, using a sample of 2610 people in February 2007.

For further information please contact:

For expert comment or case studies from over 200 media-friendly IFAs, journalists should call Unbiased.co.uk’s Media Services hotline on

020 7294 3682 or search online at www.unbiased.co.uk/media

1.      Independent Financial Adviser Promotion

Unbiased.co.uk is the consumer brand of IFA Promotion, the organisation established in 1989 to promote the value and accessibility of independent financial advice to the public. It represents around 9,000 firms of independent financial advisers across the UK, incorporating over 17,000 registered individuals. These individuals hold over 20,000 incremental qualifications which are each individually verified by the awarding body. IFA Promotion welcomes the prominent display of incremental qualifications and further developments into the credentials of independent financial advice. 

IFA Promotion is sponsored by 30 leading financial institutions, and in the past 12 months, over 600,000 consumers and businesses used unbiased.co.uk to find local independent financial advice.

IFA Promotion believes Independent financial advice should be:

• Affordable. The option to take independent financial advice should be available, by right, to all- not just the wealthiest in society.
• Convenient. IFAs should be available in the location of the consumer’s choice, wherever they live in the UK.
• Transparent. It must be clearly transparent to consumers who is able to offer independent financial advice and who is not.

  2.      Independent Financial Adviser Promotion’s sponsors

  3.     

  Aberdeen Asset Management	London Mortgage Company
  Abbey	Lincoln Financial Group
  AEGON Scottish Equitable Plc	Mortgage Express
  Alliance Trust	National Savings & Investments
  AXA Life	New Star Investment Funds
  Bright Grey	Norwich Union Life
  BUPA Health Services	Prudential
  Canada Life Ltd	Scottish Life
  The Children’s Mutual	Scottish Life International
  Clerical Medical Investment	Scottish Widows Plc
  Defaqto	Skandia UK Group
  Friends Provident	Standard Life Assurance Company
  GE Life	UnumProvident
  Invesco Perpetual	Webline Limited
  Legal & General	Zurich Intermediary Group

  Registered Office: IFA Promotion Ltd, 90 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow G2 5UB. Registered in Scotland: No. 114606

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