Vacation season is upon us, and as you make plans to drive, fly, or sail to your destination this summer, you’re no doubt making checklists of things to do and things to pack. Your to-do list might include asking a neighbor to watch your home and collect your mail, make arrangements to board any pets, leave some lights on, etc. Your packing list might include things like passports, photo IDs, medicine, a phone charger, an extra outfit, and an extra set of contact lenses.
Some of these are ‘must-haves,’ and some are for ‘just in case.’
We have three more things you should add to your list before you go on vacation. They fall into both categories—they are critical must-haves… just in case something unexpected happens.
3 Estate Planning Things to Do Before Vacation
Here are the three things we recommend doing before you go on vacation this summer:
- Make a plan for minors
- Update your healthcare wishes and power of attorney
- Tell someone about your plan!
Let’s tackle these one at a time. First, let’s talk about making a short-term and long-term plan for minors.
1. Before You Travel, Make a Plan for Minors – Short-Term Guardianship
Like many parents who sometimes travel without their kids, you may choose to leave your kids in the care of a trusted family member, relative, or friend. But what happens if your child becomes sick or needs immediate medical attention while you’re away? Does that trusted person have the legal authority to approve medical care for your child? The reality is, unless they are the child’s parent or a named guardian, they do not have that authority, which is why you must have the proper documentation in place to name them as authorized short-term guardians. Proper documentation for temporary guardianship is a crucial part of estate planning, and our estate attorneys can help you get started.
Having a plan in place for your minor children will ensure your child can get any emergency or medical care they may need while you’re away. Not sure where to start? Our estate attorneys can help craft the proper documentation so you and the people you trust to care for your children have all the paperwork they need for any unforeseen circumstance.
That’s really what Estate Planning is all about – it’s about planning ahead of time, proactively, so that all the things that are most important to you (your family, your health, and your finances) are taken care of in advance. This way, you’re prepared for whatever the future may hold.
Before You Travel, Make A Plan for Minors – Long-Term Guardianship
The other consideration when it comes to making a plan for minors is to establish long-term guardianship. Long-term guardianship is also a part of estate planning, and it involves a little more advanced planning and consideration.
Though unpleasant to think about, accidents do happen when we travel by car, plane, or ship. If the unexpected happens and you are suddenly unable to care for your child, do you know who would be responsible for caring for them? If you have yet to establish a long-term guardian, then the decision will likely be made by the courts.
Our estate planning attorneys can help you with this so you can be sure your child is cared for by the person or people you have selected. In fact, that’s really the first step. Think of your family members and friends, and then identify who you think would best be able to assume the role of long-term guardian. Then, talk with them. Ask them if this is something they would be willing to do.
(Note: although some people select godparents for their child as part of their religious tradition, you should know that godparents have no legal power or authority to assume guardianship at any time.)
Once you’ve selected a guardian, call our team. We will create a legal plan with the proper documentation to ensure the person you’ve chosen has the legal rights and responsibilities to assume the care of your child.
As you think about guardians for your minor children, this is also a great time to review and update, as needed, any beneficiaries listed on your policies or accounts. Oftentimes we will purchase a policy and name a spouse or a dependent as a beneficiary. And then months or years down the road, family situations will change. Now is a great time to review the beneficiaries which you’ve designated and make any changes or updates to your policies.
TIP: Without a legal plan in place, important decisions such as the short-term and long-term care of your children will be left for the courts to decide. Edwards Group can help.
2. Before Traveling, Make Sure Healthcare Power of Attorney and Incapacity Documents Are in Order
The next thing you should check on before traveling is to make sure your healthcare power of attorney/incapacity documents are up to date. This is not easy to think about. The hope is that you will never need to use these documents. However, if or when the unexpected happens, you and your loved ones will be glad you took the time now to ensure your wishes are documented.
Accidents and medical emergencies do happen, and of course, they can happen anytime, whether you are at home or traveling. If you’re involved in a critical car accident or need hospitalization for any reason, you may not be able to fully or clearly communicate your medical wishes and desires. Sadly, this includes any end-of-life wishes. Would you want to remain on life support? Would you like to be an organ donor? Are there religious, cultural, or personal preferences for how you would like to be cared for in a medical environment? Without legal documentation, including a healthcare power of attorney, your wishes will remain unknown to those who will care for you.
Without a doubt, this is a very difficult topic. We gently encourage you to consider these things now when you are not in an emergency situation. You’ll make much better decisions when you’re not in crisis.
TIP: Review your health insurance coverage as well as your life insurance and car insurance policies before you travel! Traveling overseas? Consider adding additional coverage for added peace of mind when you’re out of the country.
Consider Travel Insurance
Travel insurance is something to consider whether you’re flying, driving, or cruising on your next vacation. It may seem like an unnecessary expense, and while it is certainly optional, travel insurance can provide some leverage in the event of lost luggage, medical emergencies, canceled flights or cancellations due to inclement weather, or cancellations due to a personal or health-related reason. Extra insurance coverage can be beneficial for everyone but can be especially helpful for older travelers who may be more likely to face unexpected health issues.
Travel insurance is a particularly good idea if you are leaving the country as it may be difficult to communicate or navigate, especially if there’s a language barrier.
3. Before You Travel — Inform Someone of Your Plan
Creating a plan for the future is an excellent strategy, but it won’t work if the right people don’t know about your plan! Before traveling, make sure you’ve made your “helpers” aware of your plan. This includes potential guardians, your healthcare Powers of Attorney, and executors for your finances, Trusts, and Wills. Most importantly, make sure these people know where to find your documents, whom to contact, and if there are any special instructions or time-sensitive instructions to know (such as if you’re an organ donor.)
How Safe Are Your Most Important Documents?
How are you currently storing your important documents? This includes documents such as – passports, birth certificates, marriage licenses, life insurance policies, wills, trusts, investments, financial information and any other items related to your estate. Safe storage includes physical safekeeping in a secure location outside your home, such as a safety deposit box, or you could explore safe digital storage solutions.
Once your documents are stored properly and safely, you will want to make sure members of your family or other designated people know how to access them if the need arises. We recommend keeping a list of contact information for your estate planning attorney, financial advisor, tax professional, and any other key professionals who could assist with your estate handy so others know where to find it.
These are all good things to do before you travel this summer and before you travel in general. They are also good things to do every couple of years with your attorney. We can help you make sure all of your documentation is in order and up to date. Like when planning your special vacation, advanced planning is key!
Vacations are a time for rest and relaxation, not for added stress and worry. Take extra care of the things that are most important to you with a little advanced planning with one of our Edwards group estate attorneys. Our team of estate attorneys will help you put a plan in place that will give you the peace of mind knowing the important decisions regarding your children, your healthcare wishes, and your finances are handled.
Effective estate planning is an invaluable gift you give not only to yourself but also to the important people in your life. It brings peace of mind to loved ones knowing you’ve made a lot of the hard choices for them.
If you or a loved one are ready to take that step and get started planning, we encourage you to:
- Attend an upcoming workshop or
- Give us a call at 217-726-9200 to schedule an Initial Meeting
Getting started with planning can be hard! We make getting started a little easier.