Ills of having no will, Never too late to write a will

 

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Ignorance, cultural attitudes cause many to overlook estate planning

by ALLISON LAI

The total amount in frozen inheritance assets and unclaimed money has surged past the Rm100bil mark, with possessions of the deceased not distributed smoothly due to a lack of estate planning. As for uncollected funds, amounts range from small sums up to thousands of ringgit and more.

KUALA LUMPUR: Frozen inheritance assets has reached a staggering RM90bil, with experts attributing this to a lack of estate planning among Malaysians.

According to official statistics, the frozen assets include properties, shares, investments, and other capital belonging to deceased persons that cannot be distributed yet due to unresolved legal or administrative matters.

And if this does not pose a big enough headache, there is also the total in unclaimed money which stands at RM13bil.

ALSO READ: Planning ahead will save family the stress

The Accountant-General’s Department listed unclaimed money to include salaries, dormant bank accounts, insurance payouts, and deposits yet to be claimed by the rightful individuals; amounts range from several ringgit up to thousands of ringgit and more.

While frozen inheritance assets involve the estates of the deceased, unclaimed money can also entail living individuals.

Financial Planning Association of Malaysia general manager Alice Wong said many younger professionals and middle-income earners in the country still believe that estate planning is only necessary for the wealthy or elderly.

With such a mindset, many do not consider writing a will, she said.

“The reality is, if you have assets and dependants and a wish for how things should be handled after you are gone, a will is relevant,” she said in a recent interview.

Wong said cultural attitudes also play a role, as many families remain uncomfortable discussing death and inheritance matters.

She said many mistakenly believe that assets will automatically go to the “right people”.

“If you die without a will, your estate is distributed according to the Distribution Act for non-Muslims, which follows a fixed legal formula that may have nothing to do with what you actually want,” Wong pointed out.

She said another common misconception is that a will alone will allow families immediate access to assets.

“In practice, assets are often frozen upon death, and the will still needs to go through the courts to obtain a Grant of Probate before anything can be distributed,” she said.

A Grant of Probate is a court document that gives an executor – usually a trusted family member, friend or named lawyer – the authority to manage and distribute a deceased person’s estate according to the will.

Wong said some people also wrongly assume verbal promises or informal notes to be sufficient

“Spoken instructions and casual, unwitnessed writings carry no legal weight and are one of the biggest causes of family disputes after someone passes away,” she said.

Wong advised Malaysians to start with a legally valid will, review their Employees Provi-dent Fund and insurance or takaful nominations regularly, and keep proper records of assets and liabilities.

“Estate planning does not have to be overwhelming. Getting proper guidance early can save your family a great deal of stress and complications down the road,” she said.

Lawyer Joshua Kong said a common legal problem families face when someone dies without proper estate planning is disagreements over how inherited properties should be handled.

“The root of the problem is that a property suddenly has multiple new legal owners after the death, and these new owners disagree on whether it should be sold, or for how much,” he said.

Kong said a properly considered and drafted will could potentially prevent years of legal disputes among surviving family members.

“A will can dictate how the deceased’s properties are to be dealt with, including how it should be sold and who gets the proceeds of the sale,” he said.

If there is no will, Kong said distribution of assets for non- Muslims will instead follow the Distribution Act, which determines how an estate is divided among surviving family members.

He said disputes involving inherited properties could become increasingly complicated over time, especially when beneficiaries themselves die and their shares are transferred to the next generation of heirs.

“Those next of kin may have different ideas on how to deal with the property, and the cycle continues,” he said.

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Enhance fraud detection, checking banking fraud

 

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Calls for improvements in detecting suspicious banking transactions

 KUALA LUMPUR: Banks and financial institutions are facing growing scrutiny on whether measures are in place to detect suspicious online transactions before customers fall victim to scams.

The issue has come under renewed focus following a Sessions Court ruling ordering a bank to compensate a customer RM166,000 over suspicious online transactions that went undetected.

As scams evolve, banks are facing heightened urgency to identify unusual transaction patterns and act fast, particularly as fraudsters exploit human behaviour and then move in to breach banking systems.

At a Bank Negara workshop on consumer protection and fair conduct reforms, its officers said existing laws protect the confidentiality of customer information and personal data in the financial sector.

“Financial institutions are robust but there is always room for improvements,” the officers said yesterday.

They said enforcement actions had been taken in instances where breaches were identified, including requiring the institutions involved to implement corrective action plans.

The officers also said Bank Negara continued to monitor banks on consumer protection and compliance matters.

In its latest annual report, the central bank stressed the need to strengthen fraud detection systems and reinforce internal safeguards to combat sophisticated online scams.

The central bank said banks and non-bank financial institutions were required to adopt advanced fraud detection measures and strengthen internal safeguards to quickly intercept suspicious transactions.

It also stressed for a proactive approach to prevent fraudulent transactions from escalating.

The central bank said that in recent years, financial institutions had strengthened various security measures including tighter fraud detection rules and triggers, cooling-off periods for new device registrations and stronger authentication methods.

These measures contributed to a 52% decline in unauthorised fraudulent transactions involving malware and phishing reported in 2024, and prevented over Rm399mil in attempted fraudulent transactions, it said.

However, Bank Negara also acknowledged that fraud patterns were becoming increasingly complex and harder to distinguish from genuine customer activity.

Bank Negara said banks and consumers shared responsibility for safeguarding digital banking security, but reiterated that financial institutions had to determine whether weaknesses in their internal controls contributed to fraud incidents.

It also introduced the Selfcompensation Framework for Fraud Transactions (SEFT) under its Policy Document on Ensuring Fair Treatment for Victims of Unauthorised e-banking Transactions.

SEFT outlines how banks should assess fraud cases and determine compensation based on the responsibilities of both financial institutions and customers.

According to Bank Negara, more than 95% of online fraud cases in Malaysia involved authorised transactions – where victims were manipulated into willingly transferring money to scammers.

Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (Fomca) vice-president Datuk Indrani Thuraisingham agreed that banks should adopt more proactive intervention measures when transactions appear inconsistent with a customer’s normal behaviour.

“Banks are clearly not doing enough. Fraudsters now exploit human behaviour more than banking systems,” she said.

“Banks must transition from passive logging to active, pre-emptive intervention.”

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Harsh reality about estate planning in Malaysia

 

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OVER Rm90bil of wealth in Malaysia is currently frozen – not lost, not spent, just inaccessible.

Behind this staggering figure are families waiting months, sometimes years, to access money that could otherwise be used for mortgage payments, children’s education or medical bills.

This is the uncomfortable reality of estate planning in Malaysia. While many Malaysians work hard to build wealth through property, savings and investments, far fewer take the final step of ensuring that this wealth can be effectively passed on to their beneficiaries.

Estimates suggest that frozen estates in Malaysia have risen from Rm42bil in 2011 to as high as Rm90bil in recent years. According to a Bernama report in May last year, Rm13.3bil in unclaimed money was recorded by the Accountant General’s Department as of April 2025.

In news reports last year, Amanah Raya Berhad group managing director Ahmad Feizal Sulaiman Khan was quoted as saying that Rm65bil in assets, including real estate and cash belonging to deceased individuals, remain unclaimed due to lack of estate planning.

At the household level, this translates into delays, disputes and financial strain. At the national level, it represents idle capital that could otherwise contribute to economic activity.

Another reality that many overlook is that debts do not end when life does. Before any inheritance can be distributed, all of the deceased’s outstanding liabilities must be settled. This includes mortgages, personal loans, credit card balances and taxes.

In many cases, what appears to be a substantial estate might be reduced significantly after debts are cleared, leaving some families with far less than expected. In extreme cases, there may be nothing left at all.

Estate planning is often misunderstood as something complex or only relevant to the wealthy. In truth, it is a practical step that applies to anyone with dependents or assets.

From a practitioner’s perspective, three elements are critical.

First, legal clarity: A clear will or estate plan ensures that assets are distributed according to intention and reduces delays and disputes.

Second, debt awareness: Managing liabilities ensures that more of the estate can be preserved for beneficiaries rather than being consumed by obligations.

Third, liquidity planning: For families who need immediate access to funds, instruments such as insurance or structured arrangements can provide cash flow when it matters most without being tied up in legal processes.

These are not complicated strategies. They are basic safeguards that determine whether wealth can actually serve its purpose.

One of the biggest barriers to estate planning in Malaysia is attitude. Many people avoid the topic because it feels uncomfortable or premature while others assume they will get their assets without any complications.

But the evidence tells a different story. Failing to plan does not remove risk; it shifts the burden to the family often when emotions are high and urgent decisions must be made.

Estate planning should be viewed as a practical extension of responsible financial planning instead of a morbid exercise.

Ultimately, the true value of wealth lies not in how much we accumulate but in how effectively it protects the people we care about.

ASSOC PROF CHONG WEI YING Taylor’s Business School Taylor’s University