Loyalty cards abound these days, and many holders of such cards have large balances, apparently earning £122 annually on average.

However, when a loyalty card owner dies, what is the status of their points? The answer appears to depend on both the legal status of the points and the policy of the loyalty card supplier.

Some schemes never actually give ownership of the points to the cardholder. They remain the property of the supplier. However, others do pass ownership to the cardholder, so the points can be handed on to your beneficiaries.

One particularly beneficial policy is that of Tesco, which allows the families of deceased Clubcard holders to redeem points and the vouchers they send out periodically. However, not all such schemes are so generous. For more details see https://inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/money/what-happens-loyalty-points-after-die-high-street-shop-policies/.

In addition, people may have other sorts of personal contracts (insurance, service agreements, subscriptions and so on) which may or may not be wholly or partially refundable when they die.

It is worth making a list of such arrangements and keeping it in a safe place with your will: it will assist the administration of your estate if the executor is aware of any potential assets (no matter how small) and can find them quickly. Also, give consideration to ensuring your executor will have the passwords necessary to access online accounts.

For further advice and assistance in relation to making or reviewing your will, please contact Charlotte Ledson on 01254 67 22 22 or complete our online enquiry form.