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Standard Life highlights opportunity for advisers

6 June 2008

An estimated £37 billion has been gifted to trusts in the UK between 1960 and 2002*. Who is giving investment advice to the trustees of those trusts today?

Standard Life is raising awareness among financial advisers of the investment advice need arising with existing trusts.

The Trustee Act 2000 and the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 are both still relatively new. The previous legislation on investment powers dated from 1961 but for many years was considered to be out of date and restrictive. The new legislation gives much wider powers of investment to trustees.

To help guide advisers on the implications of the law in this advice area, Standard Life has produced a Briefing Card on trustee investment powers. The document is available on its website for advisers, www.adviserzone.com.

Commenting on the awareness campaign, Julie Hutchison, Head of Estate Planning at Standard Life said, "The legislation that came into force in recent years gives wider investment powers to trustees, but goes even further than that. For example, it requires that investments are suitable and diversified, with all that entails. It imposes the duty to carry out periodic reviews and it creates a new statutory duty of care that a trustee must exercise. Doing nothing is not an option for trustees."

"This means that financial advisers and solicitors need to work together to best serve the needs of their shared clients. The financial adviser understands the investment advice process involved with clients who are trustees. The adviser firm is therefore well placed to develop their business by working with local law firms who create trusts for their clients."

Media enquiries please contact:

Yvonne Savage, PR Manager
Standard Life Assurance Limited
Direct: 0131 245 0476
Mobile: 0771 248 6331
Email: yvonne_savage@standardlife.com

Lesley Davidson, PR Consultant
Standard Life Assurance Limited
Direct: 0131 245 6087
Mobile: 0773 497 4190
Email: lesley_f_davidson@standardlife.com

Notes to Editors

1. *HMRC Research Report 25, published in 2006, can be found on http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/research/report25.pdf.
   
   
2. The Briefing Card on trustee investment powers can be found on http://www.metafaq.com/resources/standard_life/estateplanning/eiht09.pdf.
   
   
3. Standard Life Assurance Limited is recognised for the high quality of its customer service, in particular for providing a service that is consistent, reliable and responsive. Standard Life received recognition for this in 2008 when the company were voted a 5 star provider at the Financial Adviser Service Awards for the 12th year running.
   
   
4. Standard Life has approximately 7 million customers worldwide and provides an extensive range of products and services, aimed at meeting the financial requirements of customers throughout their lives.

The information on this site is for qualified advisers only and must not be relied on by anyone else. If you are not an adviser you should go to our main website for information about our products and services.

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