Solicitor slow over probate

ukmaggie45

Well, once again it's been a while since I updated. Mainly because there wasn't anything to say. I should have updated in January, but complications with our new house kind of took over... gas leaks in the road, and then Transco managed to half demolish our front garden wall. And so it goes... But we're enjoying watching the birds, but they don't half eat a LOT of bird food! :eek: But to get back to business!

22 Jan

S2 phoned OH. Apologised for the messiness and delays, OH reiterated it was other peoples fault. S2 sees no reason not to draw up the final account and finish the business. Closing statements from the banks are now in. Claim back of IHT from Revenue is still with them.

S1's brokers asked for 4 weeks to investigate their error with the bond, and when the 4 weeks were up asked for another 4 weeks. But if we get any compenstation from them S2 can just write us a cheque when it happens.

OH asked about S1's bill. He has sent in a bill for some specific items of work - S2 will send us a copy with the final accounts and OH can decide whether to pay him. (OH has the impression S2 is being professionally neutral about any action we might decide to take against S1 - all S2 said was "he has co-operated fully whenever we asked him to sign anything")

S2 remembered us giving permission to sell the overvalued bond and put the proceeds into the Estate, almost sure this has happened but will check. Agrees no need to hold on any share certificates, again thinks has sent to my broker, but will double check.

Letter dated 15 Feb

S2 has prepared the corrected account to take into account the incorrectly valued bond and has forwarded it to S1 for signature.

An asset we were led to believe was worth £43,000 is worth less than £2000, but we will recieve 40% back on the reduction in value (IHT I assume).

The brokers who made the mistake are still going through their complaints procedure! (where's the rolls eyes emoticon when you need it?) S2 has written to them to say it has now been 3 and a half months and they ought to resolve it. S2 has asked the brokers to pay costs for all S2's additional work over this issue, as do not think we should have to bear the costs.

S2 will be back in touch as soon as there is any further news.

So that's where we're up to as of today. I will be so glad when all of this is sorted out and we can put it behind us. I continue to go for bereavement Counselling weekly when I am fit enough. It is helping, but it's a long drawn out process. At least I can yell at my Counsellor rather than OH when I'm cross with S1! :rotfl:

Will update again when there's any more news.

Best of luck to anyone else out there who is reading this thread and is in a similar situation.

Errata

Thanks for the update, and sorry to hear it's still dragging on. When it's finalised you'll be able to finalise your emotions and start the rest of your life and enjoy it. Best wishes.

John_Pierpoint

(where's the rolls eyes emoticon when you need it?)

It has been banned, because some posters were thought to be using it to wind-up each other. So we don't do irony on here any more.

cottager

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

It has been banned, because some posters were thought to be using it to wind-up each other. So we don't do irony on here any more.

Was there an "official announcement" from MSE Towers about this? -- where?
I used it more than any other: never against fellow-posters, only against myself or the 3rd parties being discussed. Nothing else conveys the same sentiment!

Maggie: good to have an update, and continuing best wishes.

John_Pierpoint

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=2223403
and over on "the-doom-and-gloom" section (formerly "the nutters" until the wheels started coming off our economy) the nice people morn the loss of roll eyes and shrug shoulders:
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?p=29161603&highlight=shrugging#post29161603
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?p=29167503&highlight=hmmmmmm#post29167503

confused_I_think

Maggie, I have just found this thread and I had to interupt my initial skim reading when I got to post #34, I don't have time to read it all thoroughly at the moment but will later.
So....... please tell me you got the deed of variation sorted out and used to hopefully get back some of that IHT, if that is/was possible.
My parents had a similar set of wills, everything went to the surviving spouse or, if the spouse was dead, me. At the time and put bluntly these wills wasted the IHT allowance of the first parent to die. After the death of my mother a financial advisor told my father about the Deed of Variation specifically to reduce IHT liability, a GREAT relief to me as I was looking at a possibility having to sell family land and my home to pay IHT when my father died. Such use of a Deed of Variation was confirmed by my parents' solicitor. It turns out this wasnt required as the rules changed to the IHT-allowance-carries-over in time for the change to be useful.
I am amazed at your, I think, 1st solicitor saying that a deed of variation wouldnt save you money, I hope you thanked them for such advice. I'll get back to my reading later today.

Savvy_Sue

Confused, to put you out of your misery (although it's not yet all over!), yes maggie has been able to reclaim some of the IHT, I don't remember exactly how or whether the DofV was involved.

I won't say the end is in sight, but it's possible that the beginning of the end is in sight!

confused_I_think

Thank you Savvy, I just woke with a nasty thought in my head that might have been a reason for the solicitors statement ( I just worked a night shift). The thought was ...... I recollect the financial advisor saying that the Deed of variation can be used when ALL the beneficiaries of a will agree to a change or the proposed change in the will (from Localhero's post #70 I see "ALL" was incorrect). In Maggie's case the sole beneficiary of her father's will was, sorry to say, dead. I suppose that could be countered by sayingthat the executors of Maggie's mother's will represented the beneficiary concerned. Anyhow, cup of tea in hand and reading glasses on ......here I go, page 1.

Ahhh it looks like Sdooley addressed my nasty thought in post #22. I have to say thanks to Sdooley for a lot they have written so far in this thread it is, I think, very useful to me, in so doing I have to thank Maggie for creating the opportunity for Sdooley to give this advice.

Ditto local hero #59 etc and sloughflint for provoking some useful comments.

Re Localhero's post #215 and the adjustment of value of shares for IHT, does the same thing apply to property prices and capital gains tax? The death from which I inherit came at the low point in property prices and though I have no intention to sell almost ( a year later the administration of the estate is still not complete) and I believe prices have risen somewhat since the valuation date, an adjustment upwards would perhaps reduce the CGT I will have if I ever sell the property.
Maggie you owe me dinner, I got so engrossed I forgot dinner in the oven and ended up with a plate of charcoal!

S2 does seem to have got things moving
Finally I have finished, I need to get some sleep as I am working tonight and will correct this post tomorrow. But to Maggie and her aides, I take my hat of to all of you. I hope S1 and all his similarily competant collegues around the UK some day suffer at the hands of one another, that would be justice.

ukmaggie45

OH tried to contact S2 today to find they were on holiday in Egypt... Stuck there! :rotfl: He says they seem to be making a habit of this - were stuck in France when there was the Eurotunnel fire too! (roll eyes)

Anyway, nothing much has happened for ages. Broker wants share certificates as recommend to sell some and purchase others, but need certificates obviously. Which is why OH was trying to get in touch with S2. I think I'll suggest he contacts the firm again tomorrow to ask for whoever is looking after S2's clients while they are away.

We are moving on with house planning on the new (to us) house, so I'll need to be able to access some of the gilts/bonds too as building progresses. We're still only at the planning work stage, but some work will go ahead before planning permission I think (I hasten to add this is repair type stuff and clearing the loft of inadequate insulation, nothing that needs Planning Permission). So I'd like to know I can access the funds when required.

Both OH and myself have been doing stuff in the garden, which is looking very different to when we completed on the house. This is stuff outside the scope of this thread, but if you want to have a look at posts about it, I post on progress on the House Renovation Thread.

I still don't know how long it will take until this whole saga can be regarded as ended. I just wish it was, or that at least the end was in sight.

moneysaver7890

Hi ukmaggie45,

I admire that you've continued to keep this thread updated over many months and persevered along the way.

I came across your thread when looking for information on setting up a family trust. Although it took around 2 hours to read the 14 pages - it was extremely helpful to me on educating myself somewhat on the related issue of Probate from replies by Sdooley, Localhero and other kind folk.

thank-you for posting updates......!