Access to Estate

[Deleted User]

If you are not at home when you die, who is the person who breaks into your house, and who has access thereafter? When an aunt died, everyone seemed to descend on the place and help themselves, so I'm tempted to wonder if the answers are a) anyone, and b) everyone.

g6jns_2

jack_pott wrote: »

If you are not at home when you die, who is the person who breaks into your house, and who has access thereafter? When an aunt died, everyone seemed to descend on the place and help themselves, so I'm tempted to wonder if the answers are a) anyone, and b) everyone.

Apart from the police nobody with the possibility of the executor.

getmore4less

Anyone can break in at any time.

what happens next is a very different question.

Mojisola

jack_pott wrote: »

If you are not at home when you die, who is the person who breaks into your house, and who has access thereafter? When an aunt died, everyone seemed to descend on the place and help themselves, so I'm tempted to wonder if the answers are a) anyone, and b) everyone.

Normally a relative would be given the keys and personal belongings of the deceased and that person would then have access to the home.

Did people really break in to your aunt's house?

[Deleted User]

I can see I should have worded my question differently, I didn't mean break in literally necessarily, as in burgle. But somebody has to enter the house, and somebody has to be in control of who else gets access. Who is that?

I want to leave something for someone, and am wondering whether I need to put it in a bank deposit box to make sure nobody else can get at it.

nom_de_plume

Only you can really answer that one as nobody here knows your family like you do. Depending on the item, you may want to make it's existence very well known so it's disappearance would be obvious.

Mojisola

jack_pott wrote: »

I can see I should have worded my question differently, I didn't mean break in literally necessarily, as in burgle. But somebody has to enter the house, and somebody has to be in control of who else gets access. Who is that?

I want to leave something for someone, and am wondering whether I need to put it in a bank deposit box to make sure nobody else can get at it.

It depends on your family.

The person who gets first access to the deceased's home would normally be the closest person to them - spouse/partner, close relative or friend. If this is the person who has been named as executor, even better.

Unfortunately, you don't have to discuss this matter with many people before you find cases of light-fingered relatives and friends and neighbours. Last year, one of my friends mother died - before the funeral, his ex turned up at the mother's house and talked her way in to commiserate with him. It was only after she'd gone that he noticed several expensive items were missing. He had to threaten to involve the police before the items were returned. She kept saying that his Mum had always wanted her to have them - they'd been divorced for 20 years and she hadn't been near his mother in all those years!

So, if you definitely want an item to go to an individual, either give it while you're still alive or store it securely and hope you can trust your executor to follow your wishes.

dzug1

jack_pott wrote: »

I want to leave something for someone, and am wondering whether I need to put it in a bank deposit box to make sure nobody else can get at it.

Banks don't have deposit boxes these days - offhand I can only think of one exception.


Giving the item now might be one possible solution

lulu650

I would add here that if police do need to break in and enter a deceased person's house then they tend to contact the nearest relative. Particularly if that relative's details were easily available in the house. Unfortunately, that person may not be executor or even named in the will.


As we have experienced, many items were taken from my stepfather's home from a blood relative not named in the will and money also went missing. The reasoning behind this was that was what my stepfather wanted.


If I wanted someone to have a particular item of any value I would definitely consider a deposit box. I agree with giving the item before dying but people can get embarrassed and feel uncomfortable. I know I have.

BobQ

Whoever breaks in to a house is committing an offence unless they own the property or have been given the right to do so.

When you die your property is owned by your estate and strictly only the executor or administrator of the estate has the right of entry. If they have a key then they are probably entitled to enter using it.

Whoever takes control of your possessions (eg a hospital or the police) will probably entrust them to the next of kin unless there are instructions given to the contrary.

Having access to a house does not mean you have the right to steal the contents. At best you can take possession of valuables to protect them.

Beyond this only the executor named in a will or whoever is granted a Grant of Administration can take items away. If you make a Will you can leave an item in the Will, or in a Letter of Wishes kept with the Will but this will not stop someone stealing it.

The only other thing you can do is ask someone you trust to look after it and give them instructions on what to to do if you die.

lulu650

BobQ wrote: »

....Whoever takes control of your possessions (eg a hospital or the police) will probably entrust them to the next of kin unless there are instructions given to the contrary..........

Interestingly, I didn't know at the time of my stepfather's death that stepchildren are not classed as next of kin. I don't think he ever told his blood relatives that his will stated his entire estate would be going to myself and brother