The recommendations made by the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) for updating and simplifying Inheritance Tax (IHT) legislation, despite reducing complexity, have been met with a ‘cool response’ from financial advisers, according to new research from TIME Investments.

The specialist in estate planning solutions revealed that 35% of surveyed advisers felt the recommendations would not encourage the earlier transfer of wealth between generations – with only one-fifth of advisers believing the changes would have a positive impact.

Forty-five per cent of those questioned said they didn’t know if the recommendations would have an impact.

The research, which was conducted among 55 UK-based professional financial advisers during August 2019, also showed that 58% of advisers’ clients have not yet asked for IHT advice – with the primary reason cited as ‘complexity due to the poor understanding of IHT rules.’

TIME Investments senior business development manager, Sam Jermy, commented: “The response to the OTS recommendations is interesting because they are specifically designed to simplify IHT rules which haven’t been reviewed for decades.

“We believe that the suggested reforms will encourage earlier transfer of wealth between generations, providing much needed support for younger generations who are battling to get on the housing ladder and cope with the present-day cost of living.”

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