How has estate planning gone digital?

Estate planning traditionally meant sitting down with a financial adviser and discussing the future of your estate. While there is still a case for this approach, technology has brought significant changes.

We find out what these are, and we discuss four considerations that are part of modern estate planning.

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How has technology changed estate planning?  

Zolani Matebese, CEO of Sendoff, a mobile app that deals with funerals and deathcare, says there has been a twofold digitisation of estate planning.

“As with the general financial planning landscape, estate planning has been transformed by mobile apps, virtual advisers, and automation,” says Matebese.  

Similarly, new technology has opened up considerations that didn’t exist previously, such as establishing what will happen to your email accounts, online subscriptions, and online games collection after your death.

Matebese explains that estate planning was formerly limited to regularly updating your will, assessing your life- and funeral insurance policies, and establishing what should happen after you die.  

“Nowadays there’s a wealth of technology available, which can benefit those who are inclined to plan a little further ahead. You still need to take care of the traditional aspects of estate planning, but documents, such as your will, can now be generated by answering questions online,” says Matebese.

What does estate planning look like now?

Matebese outlines some of the newer developments.

1. Online will generators

There are numerous tools available to help you get your final wishes in order. By supplying certain information, and answering questions about your relatives, executors, and how you’d like your assets to be distributed, you can have a legal will drafted in minutes.

You still need to sign and have it witnessed in person, but the process has become significantly easier now that you can get started from the comfort of your own home.

2. Advance directive vaults

An advance directive, sometimes referred to as a “living will”, is a document doctors use to determine treatment options in the event you have a medical crisis and decisions must be made without your direct input.

You can now save your wishes online, where your doctors and relatives can easily access them and make sure they are implemented.

3. Digital and social media identities

A critical decision for families is what to do with a loved one’s digital identity and social media pages when they pass on.

The person who passes usually doesn’t get a say unless it's part of their will or last wishes. There are tools available to preserve or scrub your digital identity and social media accounts when you pass on.

4. Pre-planning funerals

Apps, such as Sendoff, allow you to pre-plan every aspect of a funeral for yourself or a loved one with a detailed checklist of things that need to be done or not done, and a guide that can be activated by a simple call to the funeral home.

You can even list who should and shouldn’t be invited. This takes a lot of the angst and admin out of giving a loved one an appropriate and dignified goodbye.

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