Make Sure Your Family Can Find Your KiwiSaver

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It is easy to think of KiwiSaver as something that belongs entirely to your retirement years. But there is another practical question worth considering: would your family know where to find it if something happened to you?

When a KiwiSaver member dies, their savings become part of their estate. The person handling the estate needs to contact the KiwiSaver provider to arrange the funds.

That means knowing your provider is surprisingly important. If you have changed providers over the years, or haven’t looked at your KiwiSaver account for a long time, you may not remember exactly who manages it. Inland Revenue says you can find your provider through the KiwiSaver section of your myIR account.

Once you’ve found the details, write them down somewhere sensible. You could keep the provider’s name, contact details, and your account information with your important paperwork. You don’t need to leave sensitive passwords in an obvious place; the goal is simply to make sure the person dealing with your affairs knows where to start.

It’s also worth checking that your will is current. Your KiwiSaver forms part of your estate, so the instructions in your will are important when it comes to distributing your assets. If your family circumstances have changed, such as after a marriage, separation, or the death of someone named in your will, it may be time to have it reviewed.

Don’t assume your family will automatically know about every account you hold. Over the years, people accumulate bank accounts, insurance policies, investments, and retirement savings, and some can be surprisingly easy to overlook.

A simple list of your major financial accounts can save your family a great deal of searching later. Keep it somewhere secure and tell the appropriate person where it can be found.

This isn’t about dwelling on what might happen. It’s about making life easier for the people who may one day have to sort through your affairs. A little financial housekeeping now can spare them a lot of detective work later.