Three trust review questions every adviser should be asking

Rozzy Carrick, Change Delivery Product Owner, Protection at Aviva discusses why helping clients review their trusts could be one of the most valuable conversations advisers have this year

Published: 06 Oct 2026 5 mins read

When a client puts a protection policy into trust, it's often an important step in helping ensure the right people benefit from their plans.

But while the trust conversation typically happens when a policy is arranged, it may not always be revisited in the years that follow.

That's understandable. Life moves on. Clients get married, grow their families, change their priorities and experience major life events. Over time, the wishes recorded when a trust was first established may no longer fully reflect their circumstances today.

For advisers, that creates an opportunity to deliver real value through ongoing conversations that help clients keep trust arrangements aligned with what matters most to them.

Why trust reviews matter

Many advisers already build regular protection reviews into their client relationships. These discussions can provide a natural opportunity to revisit trusts and check they still reflect a client's wishes.

A trust review doesn't have to be complicated. Often, it's simply about asking whether anything has changed since the trust was first set up.

For example:

Are the named beneficiaries still the people the client would want to benefit?
Do trustee arrangements still feel appropriate?
Have there been any significant life events or changes in circumstances?
Does the trust continue to reflect the client's intentions?

Even a short conversation can help identify whether an existing arrangement may benefit from a closer look.

Three questions worth asking

When reviewing an existing trust, advisers may find it useful to start with three simple questions.

If a claim happened tomorrow, are these still the people your client would want to benefit?
Families and personal circumstances can change significantly over time. Reviewing beneficiary details can help ensure a trust continues to reflect a client's wishes.
Are the trustees still the right people for the role?
Trustees have an important responsibility. It's worth checking whether the people originally chosen are still willing and able to act on the client's behalf.
Has anything changed since the trust was established?
Marriage, divorce, children, grandchildren, bereavement, retirement or wider estate planning discussions can all create reasons to revisit an existing trust.

Simple questions like these can help open valuable conversations and encourage clients to review arrangements they may not have looked at for some time.

Helping clients move from intention to action

Most clients understand the importance of making plans for the future.

What can sometimes be more challenging is keeping those plans up to date.

As circumstances change, trust arrangements may need updating. Beneficiaries may need to be reviewed, trustees may change and important information may need to be amended. For clients, knowing where to start can sometimes feel overwhelming.

This is where advisers play an important role.

By helping clients understand their options and guiding them through the process, advisers can turn what might feel like a complicated task into a straightforward conversation about keeping plans aligned with their wishes.

Making trust management simpler

At Aviva, we're continuing to invest in improving how trusts are managed and supported.

Building on our existing trust capabilities, the new Manage Trust and Beneficiary journey within Adviser Connect has been designed to make updating trust information simpler and more intuitive. Advisers can manage trustee and beneficiary changes through a guided digital journey, with pre-populated amendment deeds and built-in validation checks designed to support accuracy and reduce unnecessary administration.

The aim isn't to replace advice.

It's to make it easier for advisers and clients to take action when updates are needed, helping trust arrangements stay aligned with changing circumstances and client wishes.

Supporting better trust conversations

Having access to the right information can help make trust conversations easier and more effective.

Aviva's Protection Trusts Hub brings together practical guidance, educational resources and support materials to help advisers and clients better understand trusts and the options available to them.

Whether a client is considering a trust for the first time or reviewing an existing arrangement, the hub can help support more informed conversations and decision-making.

Adviser takeaway

A protection policy may remain in place for many years, but clients' lives rarely stand still.

Regular trust reviews can help ensure arrangements continue to reflect a client's wishes as circumstances evolve. And with improving digital tools, guidance and support available, it's becoming easier for advisers to help clients keep those arrangements up to date.

Because ultimately, the value of a trust isn't simply in setting it up.

It's in helping ensure it continues to reflect what the client wants, when it matters most.