No will - who gets what when stepchildren involved?

secondone

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

I had a certain amount of sympathy for the OP until "My one chance" was mentioned. Whether it was intended or not it makes the OP sound rather grasping. I suspect the only thing they are grasping at is straws.

I'm sorry you think I come across as 'grasping' as that is definitely not the case. Unless you think being denied one or two mementos of my Dad's is fair - and no, I'm not talking about money but personal items, such as my grandads tools. Nothing of any monetary value but rich in sentiment when you only have a couple of photos from childhood.

secondone wrote: »

The estate will have been below £120,000 when my Dad died in 2007 and I understand this will have gone to his spouse but don't know what happens after that, especially regarding children/step children.

I understand my Dad and stepmum leaving things to each other. I don't understand why all children cannot have equal shares. Which is what they would both have assumed. It is only chance that my father died first.

There may well be a will. Unfortunately I have to rely on my step-siblings good nature to find this out (in time, obviously not whilst they are grieving) and the very fact that they did not think to include me when clearing/selling the house, leaves me feeling negative.

Obviously this is a delicate subject so I am sorry if I come across on the defensive, the only thing I would like is fairness for everyone.

Alter_ego

secondone wrote: »

There may well be a will. Unfortunately I have to rely on my step-siblings good nature to find this out

Not at all! Wills are public documents, you can easily obtain a copy once probate is granted.

secondone

Mojisola wrote: »

Only by default in that he didn't make a will.

Rather than planning on disinheriting his own children, it's far more likely that either he thought he'd get time to sort things out and died before he did, or he expected his wife to "do the right thing".

I agree on both counts. His wife WOULD have done the right thing, too. The unfortunate thing seems to be that they expected the children to do the right thing also.

As I said before, IF any will has been made, they would have done one together, at the same time.

Thank you for understanding.:)

secondone

Alter_ego wrote: »

Not at all! Wills are public documents, you can easily obtain a copy once probate is granted.

As I explained in my op, I have already tried a probate search which came back blank. I will be making a new application in a couple of months for my stepmum in case anything new surfaces then. Thanks

meritaten

this is really hard to say - but if your dad didnt make a will and his estate was under a certain amount and you WERENT dependent on him then his wife inherited. if she didnt make a will including you, then only HER children inherit. Its unfair yes, but its the law. Its a shame that most people dont make a will and trust to others to do whats fair. They rarely do!

secondone

meritaten: thank you for your input. Yes, the facts can be tough and your (and others) comments echo the information I have gleaned on this.

I only wish people could be made more aware of things, especially as second, even third marriages are becoming more common. People may know that it is important to make a will but I bet alot of them don't know what complications can apply to their particular case.

Hopefully someone will read this, look at their own situation and benefit from the information before it's too late.

Thank you to everyone for your comments.

Savvy_Sue

Perhaps on any visit to the Registrar for Births, Deaths and Marriages we should be given a helpful booklet entitled "Time to update your will?" or something similar ...

BitterAndTwisted

secondone wrote: »

I'm sorry you think I come across as 'grasping' as that is definitely not the case. Unless you think being denied one or two mementos of my Dad's is fair - and no, I'm not talking about money but personal items, such as my grandads tools. Nothing of any monetary value but rich in sentiment when you only have a couple of photos from childhood.

Actually, I do understand quite well how you feel about mementos. My father died very recently and didn't make a will so everything was left to and is under the control of his second wife. Like you, I'd only want a few photos and things but can't ask for them.

secondone

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Actually, I do understand quite well how you feel about mementos. My father died very recently and didn't make a will so everything was left to and is under the control of his second wife. Like you, I'd only want a few photos and things but can't ask for them.

I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. I understand you may not be able to ask his second wife for anything but (in time maybe) is there anyone who could broach the matter for you whilst she still has things of your Dad's?

Take care

secondone

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

Perhaps on any visit to the Registrar for Births, Deaths and Marriages we should be given a helpful booklet entitled "Time to update your will?" or something similar ...

I thought something similar, and believe they should automatically give a guide out when people get married for that is when your circumstances change the most. Especially when you consider the fact that marriage makes any previous wills invalid.

Giving them out when you've just had a child is also important.