Beneficiary asking for payment to be made to a different account

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Maestairs
Maestairs Posts: 2 Newbie
in Deaths, funerals & probate
We are about to distribute the proceeds of an estate . The accounts are finalised , probate sorted .However a few of the beneficiaries have requested that payment is made with a cheque to a person other than themselves . I have not enquired as to why they want this . Are we acting illegally if we pay money to a beneficiary and get them to sign receipt for that payment but the payee is not them , after all we could simply pay them in cash if they did not have an account?
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  • sammyjammy
    sammyjammy Posts: 7,388 Forumite
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    Could it be a benefits issue?
    "You've been reading SOS when it's just your clock reading 5:05 "
  • Yorkshireman99
    Yorkshireman99 Posts: 5,470 Forumite
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    Maestairs wrote: »
    We are about to distribute the proceeds of an estate . The accounts are finalised , probate sorted .However a few of the beneficiaries have requested that payment is made with a cheque to a person other than themselves . I have not enquired as to why they want this . Are we acting illegally if we pay money to a beneficiary and get them to sign receipt for that payment but the payee is not them , after all we could simply pay them in cash if they did not have an account?
    Sounds like an attempt to fiddle something. Just give them a cheque, not cash, payable to themselves. Doing as they ask could be seen as money laundering.
  • badmemory
    badmemory Posts: 7,791 Forumite
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    Maestairs wrote: »
    We are about to distribute the proceeds of an estate . The accounts are finalised , probate sorted .However a few of the beneficiaries have requested that payment is made with a cheque to a person other than themselves . I have not enquired as to why they want this . Are we acting illegally if we pay money to a beneficiary and get them to sign receipt for that payment but the payee is not them , after all we could simply pay them in cash if they did not have an account?

    If you read what you have written as if a stranger had written it what would YOU think? My initial instinct said dodgy, I'm prepared to bet your's did too. Added to which making payments to someone not a beneficiary could be considered as fraud, receipt or no receipt.
  • Margot123
    Margot123 Posts: 1,116 Forumite
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    This is something I have come up against as well. My solicitor advised me to only issue cheques, and to make them payable to the beneficiary as per their name stated on the will. If there are any issues with that, then it is their problem to sort, not yours.
    You need to be very careful in complying with odd requests from beneficiaries. Always protect yourself by following the letter of the Law.
  • Maestairs
    Maestairs Posts: 2 Newbie
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    Thanks all , will call solicitor to verify options . Not sure how to give individual thanks on this forum
  • Margot123
    Margot123 Posts: 1,116 Forumite
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    The role of executor isn't as easy as people assume. You need to distance yourself from family connections whilst administering the estate. It is a very difficult thing to do but you need to do it.
    Never concern yourself with 'helping out X, Y & Z' by giving money to third parties. The risk of slightly upsetting a beneficiary, by doing things correctly, is better than you being sued by them at a later date for an inheritance they say they never received!
    Sorry to be so straight-talking and abrupt but I am speaking from experience.
  • Yorkshireman99
    Yorkshireman99 Posts: 5,470 Forumite
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    Maestairs wrote: »
    Thanks all , will call solicitor to verify options . Not sure how to give individual thanks on this forum
    There really are no options! As executor your legal responsibility is to distribute the estate according to the will without any bias. By all means make a quick call to the solicitor as I would not expect you to act just on the basis of advice from here.
  • konark
    konark Posts: 1,260 Forumite
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    What sort of sums are we talking about?

    The beneficiaries could always do a 'Deed of Variation' to give their share to someone else.
  • unforeseen
    unforeseen Posts: 7,280 Forumite
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    konark wrote: »
    What sort of sums are we talking about?

    The beneficiaries could always do a 'Deed of Variation' to give their share to someone else.

    But that would still affect their benefits if, as appears, that is the reason for originally asking for payment to a different person
  • Yorkshireman99
    Yorkshireman99 Posts: 5,470 Forumite
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    unforeseen wrote: »
    But that would still affect their benefits if, as appears, that is the reason for originally asking for payment to a different person
    I suspect that many think they can avoid benefits consequences by having it paid to somone else.
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