Yes. If your will and key documents are missing, out of date, or poorly coordinated, your family can face delays, unnecessary taxes, and avoidable conflict, often at the worst possible time.
Many Canadians assume that having a will means things will be handled smoothly. In reality, outcomes depend far less on the existence of documents and far more on how well everything works together.
A plan can look complete and still fail. Documents can exist and still leave gaps. Families often discover those gaps only when decisions must be made quickly, under stress, and without the person who understood the original intent.
Research helps put this into perspective.
According to a study by the Angus Reid Institute (2023), roughly half of Canadian adults do not have a will at all. Many respondents acknowledged that a will is important, but still had not taken action.
The 2019 Canadian Financial Capability Survey, conducted by the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, found that many Canadians who do have wills have not reviewed or updated them in years, even after major life events such as marriage, divorce, children, or changes in health and finances.
That same survey also found that many Canadians do not have powers of attorney or other essential legal documents in place.
In plain language:
That gap between intention and execution is where families encounter problems.
Wills and estate plans are often rushed.
Sometimes it is time pressure. Sometimes cost. Sometimes the process shifts from coordination to completion.
The person who created the will or power of attorney walks away believing everything is in order. There’s relief. A box feels checked.
When, in fact, it may not be.
They may never know. Their family will not know either until something happens. And then, it’s too late.
That’s when executors find themselves scrambling. Information is missing. Documents do not align. Decisions become reactive instead of deliberate.
That is when things begin to unravel.
A list is essential, but a list is not the solution.
A proper checklist must be thoughtful and thorough. It must be built by someone with experience dealing with estates, legal obligations, tax consequences, and family dynamics.
More importantly, it must be used by someone who understands how each item interacts and where problems tend to hide.
The value of a checklist is not the paper it is written on. The value is the expertise applied to it.
Without that expertise, a checklist can create comfort without certainty.
The issue is rarely a lack of effort. Most people who create a will genuinely believe they have handled things responsibly.
Where problems arise is in coordination.
Documents are created at different times. Life changes. Beneficiaries are updated in one place but not another. Powers of attorney are overlooked. And because everything looks complete on the surface, no one realizes there may be gaps.
The relief of having “done something” can create a false sense of security.
What makes the difference is not simply having documents. It is understanding how those documents interact, how assets flow, how tax consequences unfold, and how decisions will actually play out for the people left behind.
That is why a thoroughly built and expertly reviewed checklist matters.
Many Canadians don’t know that having an up-to-date will and power of attorney are essential parts of a retirement plan. It is. And this is why I ask all of my clients to share their documents with me. I review them and flag any issues that they have missed that could impact their retirement plan.
A properly coordinated plan does not guarantee that everything will be easy. But it does reduce the likelihood that your family will be forced to make reactive decisions in the middle of stress, uncertainty, and grief.
And that, in practical terms, is what helps prevent a financial and legal mess.
If you’re approaching or living in retirement in British Columbia or Alberta and want to bring clarity to your retirement decisions, please join me at my next retirement seminar.
If that’s not convenient, please book a confidential introductory conversation with me.
Wes Forster is an experienced financial planner in Kelowna, BC, serving clients across British Columbia and Alberta. He helps individuals approaching or living in retirement build integrated, stress-tested financial plans. Through his work at Seravue Financial, Wes helps clients make thoughtful retirement income decisions with clarity and confidence.
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