Do I need a personal injury trust to protect my compensation and benefits

A personal injury trust is the only legitimate way to hold and use compensation and still receive means tested benefits. Such a trust is an opportunity to keep and use your compensation and receive means tested benefits.

The personal injury trust means your compensation will be ignored if you or others in your close family either claim, or need to claim, means tested benefits. The same applies if you require local authority care.

I continue to be surprised by the advice given to people receiving accident compensation about personal injury trusts. The advice presents a personal injury trust as an optional extra. A personal injury trust is vital in many cases and advisable in others.

Continue reading “I may need a personal injury trust”

To create a trust for personal injury compensation you first need a trust deed. This is a legal document which creates the trust and appoints your trustees.

Once your trust document is complete the next step is for the trustees to open a separate bank or building society account to hold your personal injury trust fund. Your trust is created by a deed and the trustees then open a joint current account.

You cannot create a trust just by opening a separate bank account, you need to first create the trust with a deed. People sometimes turn up at a bank with a compensation cheque, but without a deed, and this is why confusion is created. I suggest you waste no time on banks before the trust deed is complete.

I recommend you open an account in a convenient local branch. I will recommend banks to clients on the basis of recent client experience. The trust account should be cheque book only, with at least two signatures required for a financial transaction, so there will be times when you need help at the branch. Continue reading “Which bank account is best for a personal injury trust”