True Gifts: Leaving the Things That Matter to the People Who Matter

Beyond the Will: Why Personal Items Need More Than a Legal Document

A Will is one of the most important documents you can create. It sets out your wishes, protects your loved ones, and provides the legal framework for everything you leave behind.

But there is a category of things a Will alone struggles to handle well: the personal ones.

The watch that belonged to your father. The bike you've ridden thousands of miles on. A piece of jewellery with a story only you know. A painting picked up on a trip that meant everything at the time. These things carry emotional weight that no legal clause can fully carry with them.

They deserve more than a line in a document.

The Problem With How We Handle Personal Gifts

Most people, when they think about what happens to their possessions, focus on the big things: property, savings, financial assets. And they're right to. But in our experience, it's often the smaller, more personal items that cause the most difficulty for families.

Here is what usually happens:

1. ‍Nothing is recorded at all. The item exists, the person has a clear sense of who should have it, but it is never written down. When the time comes, family members are left guessing, and sometimes disagreeing.‍
2. It becomes a line on a list. A note in a notebook, a mention in an email, a casual conversation that no one can quite remember accurately. These carry good intentions but no real weight.‍
3. It is buried in a Will without context. A Will can name a beneficiary for a specific item, but it cannot carry the personal message, the story, or the reason. The legal instruction arrives without the heart behind it.

 None of these outcomes do justice to the item, the person receiving it, or the person who wanted them to have it.

What Makes This Hard to Solve

The challenge is not that people do not care. Most people care deeply. The challenge is that there has never been a simple, secure way to record a personal gift properly: the item, the recipient, the message, and the meaning, all in one place, stored safely until the right moment.

Traditional tools are not built for this. A Will is a legal document. A letter can be lost or never found. A conversation can be forgotten or misremembered.

What was missing was something in between: personal enough to carry real meaning, secure enough to be trusted, and simple enough that people would actually use it.

Introducing adeus True Gifts

adeus True Gifts is a new feature in the adeus Digital Vault, designed to do exactly that.

It lets you create a private, personal record for any item you would like to leave to a named individual. Think of each True Gift as a sealed letter in an envelope. Only the person it is meant for will ever open it.

What each True Gift includes

When you create a True Gift, you will be asked to provide:

•  A description of the item: what it is, where it came from, and any relevant details that give it context

•  The recipient: the named individual you would like to receive it

•  A personal message: your own words, to accompany the gift

•  Supporting files (optional): photos, receipts, valuations, certificates, or anything else that makes the gift feel complete

 Once created, your True Gift is securely sealed and stored within your adeus account. Nobody else can access it. It will not move until the time is right.

How True Gifts Are Released

Your True Gifts are not released automatically. When the time comes, your Executor or a Key Contact you designate plays an important role in the process.

Using the adeus Executor Toolkit, your Executor will review each True Gift and confirm that the item is still available. They will also take it into account for Inheritance Tax purposes. Once confirmed, the named recipient receives a secure email containing a private link to access their True Gift. They do not need an adeus account to open it.

How Secure Is It?

adeus True Gifts is built on Smart Contract technology. Once your True Gift is created, the record of it is secure, private, and tamper-proof. No one can alter or access the contents without the proper authorisation at the right time.

True Gifts provides an immutable audit trail, giving you and your loved ones complete confidence that your wishes will be carried out exactly as you intended.

You Do Not Need a Will to Get Started

True Gifts is available to anyone with a paid adeus account. You do not need to have written a Will to use it.

It is not a legal document in the same way a Will is, but that is not always the point. For many people, creating a True Gift is about giving the people they care about something just as valuable as a legal instruction: clarity. Their loved ones will know exactly what they wanted, and they will have their words to go with it.

And when you are ready to write a Will, it is right there. adeus guides you through it, step by step, and your True Gifts become part of the wider legal picture.

Getting Started

Creating a True Gift is simple.The process is fully guided, with straightforward questions walking you through each step. Most people complete a True Gift in just a few minutes.

Like everything in adeus, it is designed to be intuitive. No legal knowledge or technical experience needed.

True Gifts is included as part of the adeus Premium Digital Vault. If you are on a Basic Digital Vault plan, you can upgrade from within your account to get access.

Your True Gifts are stored securely and can be reviewed at any time. If circumstances change, such as selling an item or changing your mind about a recipient, you can delete a True Gift whenever you like.

‍