help with pension

devon24 · 11 June 2013 at 10:41PM

hi can any one give me advice with this,

My nephew die of cancer two month ago, his wife left him six month ago, she didn,t went to know,

she told him to go he went to his mum and dad where he die, he had a pension pot of £80,000 his wife names is on it. he could not remember if it was on there or not anyway it is, but he make a will with a solicitor before he die leaving everything to his two daughter 17yrs and 19yrs old, from a previous relationship will the pension trustee honor his wishes of the will, he was married to her for three years, they were separated, she deserted him that was his words.

opinions4u · 12 June 2013 at 5:50AM

If he was still legally married and the expression of wish form states "wife" then it would be one hell of a big decision from the trustee to go against that.

redbuzzard · 12 June 2013 at 7:47AM

opinions4u wrote: »

If he was still legally married and the expression of wish form states "wife" then it would be one hell of a big decision from the trustee to go against that.

The trustee needs to be in possession of the facts. If the wife was not living with him and dependent on him at the time of his death it does not follow that they must pay the wife, though they might well.

You can't "will" the pension but the trustee should be given a copy of the will by the executor and the trustee will take into account what he has done with his assets in the will.

I saw a similar case as a trustee where we had an EOW in favour of an estranged but no longer financially linked wife, and a mother who claimed some dependence. No pension was paid and the lump sum was split. Here you have children, albeit more or less grown up.

The rules of the scheme will be relevant and the trustee must follow those and the trust deed.

dunstonh · 12 June 2013 at 9:45AM

Pensions are not part of the estate and the Will has no legal consideration on the pension. Depending on the type of pension, the trustees may consider a Will and circumstances in place at the time to decide to overrule any previous nomination. However, it really depends on the type of pension it is and ability to prove things. It will take a fair bit to overrule a nomination to spouse. Not potentially impossible but the trustees need full information ASAP (in case the wife starts the process - they will have no reason to question a payment to her as she is the nominated beneficiary).

atush · 12 June 2013 at 10:45AM

I agree, I have heard of cases where the trustees went against the expressions of wishes in cases simialr to this.

So you must have a letter and a copy of the will sent to the trustees ASAP. The letter should state about his illness, his wife's abandonment of him during, and the fact that they had separated. And give details of the children.

It may work out, it may not. But given the time elapsed, I'd get it done today. Call and fax the trustees and follow up with the hard copy.

Sounds like a short time after he became ill, but still too bad he didn't write to the trustees with your help before he died.

devon24 · 12 June 2013 at 8:56PM

Thanks to you all for your help;
what is the point of a making a will

mania112 · 12 June 2013 at 9:01PM

If the pension administrators are made aware of the will, it shouldn't be a tough decision.

Expression of wish, is just that - it's not 'what will happen'. Ultimately, it's at the discretion of the trustees what happens.

atush · 12 June 2013 at 9:46PM

What is the point of making a will?

Well, most peole have more to leave behind then their pension. Homes, cars, personal property/jewelry, assets, cash.

Pensions are outside the estate, to protect them from tax among other things.

People should have the responsibility to leave their affairs easy to settle. Esp in this case as the pension and will were spoken about before death. If the will was changed after the wife left him, and before his death, why did he not mention the pension? Should have been taken care of then.

mania112 · 12 June 2013 at 10:03PM

Saying 'pension are outside of the estate' is fine.

But that is not to say that 'a will does not direct a pension to the beneficiaries'.

In this case, it's clear that the expression of wish on the pension is not up-to-date and it would be irresponsible for the trustees to send the funds to the spouse.

dunstonh · 13 June 2013 at 8:14AM

I'm surprised that the solicitor giving advice on the Will didn't remind him to adjust the nomination on the pension.

devon24 · 20 June 2013 at 11:14PM

hi,
just found out,that she is not the Pension nominee, there is no names on
it,do this meen that they will respect the wishes of the will of my nephew.

help with pension

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