Take Care of the People That Matter Most
Your family is your world. That’s why it’s important to make sure they are financially protected if something happens to you.
Estate Plans for First Responders
Your job as a first responder has a high risk of injury, disease or even death, along with a higher than average risk of becoming disabled. To plan for your family’s financial protection, it’s important for active or retired first responders to create an estate plan to ensure that all of your needs and your family’s needs are being met in
the event of your disability or death.
Your estate includes all of the assets you collect over your lifetime including stocks and bonds, real estate, money in checking and savings accounts, personal items of value (jewelry, furniture, cars), family heirlooms and more. An estate plan ensures your assets are distributed to your loved ones the way you want at the time you designate. If you don’t have an estate plan in place when you die, you won’t have the ability to decide how everything will be divided.
Your estate plan will include the following basic documents:
- Will: Outlines your wishes to your family in regard to inheritance and distribution of property, as well as guardianship of your children.
- Trust: Like wills, trusts explain exactly which family members should receive your assets. Trusts also allow you to continually manage your affairs while you’re still alive.
- Power of Attorney: You designate someone you trust to make decisions for you if you are alive and unable to make them yourself. They are usually used for health care needs or financial/property decisions.
Take Advantage of Estate Planning Resources
- Los Angeles Retired Fire & Police Association (LARFPA) (insert LARFPA link)— provides members with a $600 lifetime benefit to assist members in developing an Estate Plan including creation of a living trust, a will or in revising and updating an existing Estate Plan. Email estateplanning@larfpa.org for more information.
- Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) — members should call the LAPPL Legal Services Department at (213) 251-4575 for information on available estate planning.
- Los Angeles Police Federal Credit Union (LAPFCU) (insert LAPFCU link) — provides low-cost trust and will estate planning with 10% off for LAPFCU members.
Life and AD&D Insurance Provided by LAPRA
LAPRA provides active members and recruits who are enrolled to become LAPRA members with a total of $27,000 of Basic Life insurance and $15,000 of Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D) insurance paid by LAPRA. Retired members receive $8,000 of Basic Life insurance paid by LAPRA. For additional protection, active and retired members can purchase Optional Life and AD&D insurance.
Naming a Life Insurance Beneficiary
To ensure your LAPRA Life and AD&D insurance is paid according to your wishes, you must name a beneficiary(ies). You may do this by going to LAPRAlive.org. You can name a person, trust or charitable organization as a beneficiary. As your life changes, it’s important to make sure you update the beneficiary information on file with LAPRA. Life events like marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, and the passing of a loved one are just some of the significant life events that may have an impact on your beneficiary information.
It’s important to periodically review your beneficiary designations, especially after major life events. You may need to make changes if your circumstances change.
Why It’s Important to Name a Beneficiary
• Control: You have the final say over who receives your assets.
• Access: Beneficiaries may have quicker access to funds, which can be helpful when unexpected expenses arise.
• Avoids probate: You can avoid probate court supervision in many cases.
• Prevents mistakes: You can prevent providing assets to people you don’t intend.