Having surveyed over 2,800 high net worth and affluent US investors, UBS said 46 per cent of benefactors haven’t discussed their inheritance plans with their children. But with an estimated $40 trillion of personal wealth expected to change hands by 2050, “there is a lot at stake and a lot to talk about.”

Adding weight to the issue, an Institute for Preparing Heirs study by Roy Williams and Vic Preisser looked at 3,500 wealthy families over a 20-year period and found that the reason why they often succumb to the “shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves” phenomenon is because their heirs are simply not prepared to handle the wealth. A considerable 60 per cent of family wealth-related failures were caused by a breakdown of communication and trust within the family unit, it revealed.

It is no secret that having strong communication skills is an important family trait - but when considerable wealth is involved the topic of money and inheritance can be a particularly sensitive one to broach. The wealth management industry as a whole has in recent time sharpened its focus on helping family clients maintain the art of communication - particularly at a time when globalization is resulting in an uptick in the number of families whose members are dispersed internationally.

That said, the top three barriers preventing those leaving an inheritance from talking about it with their family are, according to UBS's latest study, more emotional rather than practical. Just under half said it doesn't feel like a pressing issue, while 32 per cent said they don’t want their offspring to rely on the inheritance and 27 per cent said they don’t want their children to feel entitled to wealth.

For those on the receiving end of a potential inheritance, the biggest obstacle - as stated by 46 per cent - is that their families don’t talk openly about financial issues. As was the case with benefactors, they too said it doesn’t feel like a pressing issue, while 23 per cent said they don’t want to appear greedy.

"Talking about inheritance planning is absolutely something advisors should be advocating more to clients," Sameer Aurora, head of Investor Insights for UBS Wealth Management Americas, told Family Wealth Report. "Wealth managers and advisors should position the inheritance discussion in the broader context of helping their clients with longevity planning."

It emerged that while wealthier benefactors appear to have planned more around inheritance, they are no more likely than less affluent investors to have actually discussed these plans with their future heirs.

“They are more likely to have an up-to-date will and to have put a wealth transfer plan in place, but they are still not talking about the plans with their heirs,” UBS said. “Even with more wealth at stake, emotional barriers hold back open discussions between benefactors and their heirs.”

Talking openly about inheritance planning has a “tremendous impact” on heirs’ satisfaction with the wealth transfer process while also reducing the likelihood of family disagreements – a finding vouched for by 89 per cent of the heir survey participants.

“Sensitive issues like deciding the fate of the family home may not be simple to resolve prior to a parent's passing, but it will only be more complicated after they pass without clarifying their intentions on inheritance,” UBS said, noting that this is particularly the case for blended families