Beneficiaries
A beneficiary designation says who receives an account if you die. It sits outside your will and generally overrides it, which is exactly why it is worth five minutes of attention.
Adding beneficiaries
Beneficiaries live in account settings, under Beneficiaries and Contacts, on the account you are naming them for.
Open the account
Beneficiaries are set per account, not per profile. Open the account you want from your home screen.
Tap the three dots
Top-right corner of the account screen. This opens account settings.
Tap Beneficiaries
Under Beneficiaries & Contacts.
Add primary beneficiaries
Enter each person's full legal name, relationship, date of birth, and the percentage they receive. Percentages have to total 100.
Add contingent beneficiaries
These inherit only if none of your primary beneficiaries survive you. Worth naming, which stops the account falling back to your estate.
Review and save
Check the names and percentages, then save.
Primary vs contingent
| Who they are | |
|---|---|
| Primary | First in line. Splits go by the percentages you set. |
| Contingent | Next in line, only if no primary beneficiary survives you. |
When to revisit this
Beneficiary designations go stale quietly. Check yours after:
- A marriage or a divorce
- A birth or an adoption
- A death in the family
- Opening a new account, since designations do not carry across accounts
A beneficiary designation generally takes precedence over what your will says about the same account. If the two disagree, the designation usually wins. Keep them consistent.
Trusted contacts
Separate from beneficiaries, and also under Beneficiaries & Contacts. A trusted contact is someone we may reach out to if we cannot reach you or we are concerned about your account. They get no authority over it and cannot move money.
Naming one is optional, and recommended.
Questions about designations, trusts, or estate planning? Email support@alooola.com. For anything complex, loop in your estate attorney.