Executors of will not informing beneficiaries

DemiDee

Hi all,

I would really appreciate some advice as to what can be done - preferably that doesn't involve an expensive legal route - when executors fail to inform a beneficiary/beneficiaries of a will that they are indeed a beneficiary? Is there any governing body or otherwise that ensures executors do the right thing when carrying out what they have been entrusted to do if it's deemed that the will is not enough to have them use a solicitor? Many thanks for any advice.

dzug1

Short of the courts, no there is nothing. Executors are not obliged to tell beneficiaries anything until they come to pay out.


There's nothing (apart from the possibility of legal action) to ensure they do the right thing and they don't have to employ a solicitor at all unless the will says so.


What is the time scale in your case? Many beneficiaries are optimistic in the extreme as to how long things take.

jackyann

Bear in mind:

If the deceased told you they had named you as a beneficiary:
they may have changed their mind, they may not have made a will, they may have made a later will & not told you.

Paperwork can take months.

This suggestion has come up a few times on this board:
If:
1. you know who the executor(s) is/are
2. you are fairly sure you are named
3. some months - at least 6 - have gone by (or you have other reasons to be concerned)
4. any informal enquiries you are able to make through friends or family have come to a dead end

Then you can write a letter by recorded delivery along these lines:

Dear Ms Executor

I am writing to you about the will of Mr. Deceased, as he gave me to understand that you would be his executor, and that I / my children would expect a bequest of his model train set.

I know the administration can take some time, but wondered if you would be able to confirm if this is the case and when I might expect to receive this?

Thank you for your trouble........

You can then follow this up if need be.

Sorry if I'm teaching my granny to suck eggs - it's not clear what point you are at, or how certain you are of the bequest.

Marktheshark

If they have filed for probate you can buy a copy of the will from the probate office.

In this country we have a Culture of poor understanding what executors do.
When you are an executor you are acting for the beneficiaries interests, not the deceased.
The power often goes to peoples heads and they start a cold war with the beneficiaries.

DemiDee

Thank you very much to all who have kindly replied.

A little more detail many help, and apologies for not explaining more thoroughly at the outset. I hadn't wanted to overload my first post with too much information.

To answer questions - the deceased was a very good friend who passed away at the beginning of February. His son and daughter were made executors of the will, both of whom had my contact details. I was only made aware of his death in April, by a family member (not one of the executors). I was greatly saddened to hear that over 200 people attended his funeral, but I hadn't been notified even of his death, in spite of having sent cards and small gifts since his last letter to me in December. When I called to ask why I hadn't been notified (understanding that these things can be difficult, time consuming and distressing for families and so not wanting to add to their burden) I was told that several phone calls had been left and numerous attempts to contact me, none of which was true and it was confirmed that - unsurprisingly - nobody had tried the most convenient form of quick contact: email.

Being a little suspicious of the conflicting stories I was getting from son and daughter, and not wanting to burden them further, I decided to pay for a copy of the will to satisfy my concerns. I was actually shocked to see my name mentioned. I subsequently sent a recorded delivery letter to both parties, addressing my concerns at having not been notified of my friend's passing, and asking if he was aware that I had been writing to him. I did not mention that I knew about the will, since I don't want it to seem that my main concern is the money, which is far from the case (the amount left is a nominal sum, under £2500). But the thought that his last wishes aren't being adhered to by those who he entrusted concerns me greatly.

The daughter did not reply. The son replied in great detail and with more lies about having tried to contact me via phone and post - absolutely no mention of me being a beneficiary at all. I am currently endeavouring to contact a couple of other beneficiaries (charities based abroad) to see if they have been informed, so that I am aware as to whether this is something that just relates to me, or whether information is being withheld from other beneficiaries, too.

Jackyann has said to wait at least six months, but I am worried that there is a time limit to contest it, which (I think) runs out in early August. Also, given the above, I doubt very much that they have any intention of carrying out his last wishes, in my case and maybe in the case of other beneficiaries too.

It's a very sad scenario given that this dear man spent much of his latter years taking funerals and sorting out the mess that was often left behind. I do not want to get into any war with his family over a nominal sum of money but I am very concerned that his last wishes are seemingly not being adhered to nor respected.

It has all made me wonder just how effective wills without a solicitor's involvement are, even in cases whereby the deceased feels that they can trust those tasked with executing the will properly. Thankfully, we now have a system whereby one can download wills as have I, but this hasn't always been the case and I imagine that there are many cases whereby a beneficiary is never notified and remains in the dark.

TonyMMM

It is a shame you weren't notified of the death.

As a beneficiary there is no requirement for them to notify you of anything, but they must execute the will correctly - so in due course you should (assuming the estate contains sufficient assets) receive your inheritance.

If the death only took place in February it could still be many months before the estate is finalised and distributed.

At this stage there is nothing to contest.

DemiDee

Do you happen to know if there is a time limit, Tony?

troubleinparadise

I don't believe you have grounds to contest the will, as it is not the contents that you have issue with, but rather more the actions of the Executors.

It can take a surprisingly long time to start making distributions to beneficiaries as gathering in all the funds due to the estate can also take a surprisingly long time (I'm thinking of selling shares, assets or property).

There is often talk of an "Executor's year", but strictly there is no set time limit.

The executors are liable in law to make the correct distributions to the beneficiaries, assuming the funds or particular item are still available at the date of death or after all debts have been met. They should not just decide to distribute as they see fit, or keep the estate for themselves if beneficiaries, and not make the bequests as the deceased wished. You do have recourse in law against them personally should they not make the payment due to you.

In their defence slightly with regard to making contact with you, after my mother's death I only had an old address book to refer to in an attempt to contact old friends or work colleagues, and failed to track down a number of people until some months later, and some not at all. Personal letters don't always have addresses or phone numbers, and cards very rarely (or even surnames sometimes!), and my mum did throw away a fair amount of paperwork herself. So it is possible that they did not have the correct contact details despite your correspondence and gifts....

I'm afraid that the lack of mention of your entitlement in the son's letter to you rings an alarm bell with me - that would have been the perfect opportunity to notify you of the kind thoughts of your friend in naming you as a beneficiary in his will.

DemiDee

Thank you for such a well-written, thorough and helpful reply, Trouble. From your reply and others here, I'm wondering if I should leave this alone for several more months and see what happens. I do understand that sometimes insufficient information is given to enable executors to contact beneficiaries, but that was not the case here, since my current address - where I have lived for over ten years and to which the daughter sends Christmas cards each year, is listed next to my name in the will. I had also sent an email to the daughter in December which I know was read and thus they have my email address, too. As you have said, Trouble, it seems that when the perfect opportunity to tell me has been given to both, each have decided to avoid the issue of the will entirely, all of which has led me to believe that they are not going to honour their father's wishes.

That said, thanks to replies here, I am going to hold out in the hope that they are simply waiting for the estate to be sorted and will then do the right thing. I don't think it looks promising.

Many thanks for all the invaluable and helpful replies.

Mojisola

DemiDee wrote: »

I am currently endeavouring to contact a couple of other beneficiaries (charities based abroad) to see if they have been informed

I would definitely share the copy of the will with the charities concerned so that they can make contact over the legacies left to them. You then won't be a lone voice asking about how the estate is being dealt with.

DemiDee

Since my last post I have called one of the executors and given them every opportunity to come clean. In the end, I just asked outright if I was in the will and whether this is what all the bad feeling was about. She said no and then put the phone down! Unbelievable that someone's own daughter - entrusted with so much and the main beneficiary - could resent telling people who were otherwise on good terms and distributing with the deceased's wishes in mind.

Thank you for all your help and advice, folks. I was hoping it could be solved amicably but it looks this this will eventually go to a solicitor. Lesson: be very sure you can trust the person(s) you entrust as executors!