Immediate access to funds

When we talk about estate planning, a common concern of my clients is whether their loved ones will have immediate access to funds to pay for the burial or funeral, if arrangements have not already been pre-paid. One of the easiest ways to achieve this is by nominating someone as your transfer on death beneficiary. The TOD beneficiary would have immediate access to those funds once a death certificate has been presented. Banks sometimes work differently and they may require something small in addition to the death certificate. Most commonly, once the certificate has been presented, your heir will have access to the funds and won’t have to dig into their own pocket to pay for those expenses.