Dealing with Utility Companies

Linton

If your uncle is the executor he is responsible. When I was executor we used a solicitor but he purely dealt with the legal aspects of handling the money, minimising and calculating IHT, getting probate and selling the house. I looked after everything else.


The whole process took about 12 months from date of death to final distribution, but I was able to get the solicitor to make a partial distribution a couple of months after completion of the house sale.

Billy_84

So far from date of her passing to completion of selling the property it’s been 16months, for you how long was it after completion of the property was all the inheritance distributed?
As the utilities have still not been settled even though the house was sold early Feb (6weeks & counting) will this effect the IHT totalling up? I’m just trying to get a timeline in my head.
Thank you for your time as well 👍

Savvy_Sue

the IHT won't go up because utility bills haven't yet been paid: if anything that would reduce the value of the estate.

I can well believe that it could take over six weeks for final bills to be produced and a solicitor pay them.

If any pensions or other state benefits were being paid, it could take even longer for a refund of any overpayments of these to be demanded.

so the short answer to 'timescale' is "don't hold your breath". If you have some pressing need for funds, ask about an interim payment, but solicitors generally seem reluctant to make these.

Billy_84

Thank you for the reply.
I think because I haven’t been informed properly throughout the whole process I’ve been left guessing. The last part of the estate to be tied up was the property it had been empty for 5months before completion of sale but yet no utility bills had been paid and now 6 weeks after the sale it’s still the same. Day after the sale I was told by the executor that there was just a couple of bills to pay and that’s it (6 weeks & counting) and I’m still being told it’s just a few bills to be paid!
I’m reluctant to ask to any questions as I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes. I’m being told by the executor that solicitor in charge has been pretty useless.
I suppose my question was is it normal to still be trying to pay ‘a couple of bills’ 6 weeks after sale. I’m also assuming probate is completed if the sale of the property went through?

Savvy_Sue

Billy_84 wrote: »

I think because I haven’t been informed properly throughout the whole process I’ve been left guessing.

Your situation is a trying one, because the executor has engaged a solicitor (or was co-appointed with one by the terms of the will), and the solicitor's client is the executor, not you.

Beneficiaries don't really have any rights to information while the process is ongoing. Once probate has been obtained, anyone can get a copy of the will. And once the estate has been distributed the residual beneficiaries have a right to see accounts. But that's about it, AFAIK.

Billy_84 wrote: »

The last part of the estate to be tied up was the property it had been empty for 5months before completion of sale but yet no utility bills had been paid and now 6 weeks after the sale it’s still the same. Day after the sale I was told by the executor that there was just a couple of bills to pay and that’s it (6 weeks & counting) and I’m still being told it’s just a few bills to be paid!
I’m reluctant to ask to any questions as I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes. I’m being told by the executor that solicitor in charge has been pretty useless.
I suppose my question was is it normal to still be trying to pay ‘a couple of bills’ 6 weeks after sale.

With solicitors, predicting timescales is like peering into a crystal ball. However it's absolutely normal ...

for utility bills to be frozen between the date of death and probate being granted, with a final bill only being produced when the supplier hears that there's a change of customer.

for solicitors and other executors to place a notice in the London Gazette and local newspaper inviting creditors of the late Joe Bloggs to get in touch, and for them to wait a set period to allow them to do so, and for them to not finalise the estate until that period has passed. And that's assuming no-one DOES come forward claiming that old Joe owes them £500K, because in THAT situation the executor must check whether the debt is owed, and pay it.

for the DWP to wait as long as possible before writing to state that the late Joe Bloggs

MAY have been overpaid pension credit and / or certainly WAS overpaid state pension or some other benefit and this must be repaid Right Now Or Else, and at that point the executor must check whether DWP got it right, which in the case of Pension Credit is a bit of a black art and it may take months to confirm that actually Joe was NOT overpaid. Meanwhile no reasonably cautious solicitor will finalise distribution of the estate ...

And so on ...

Billy_84 wrote: »

I’m also assuming probate is completed if the sale of the property went through?

that's a reasonable assumption, yes.

Savvy_Sue

BTW I forgot to check whether the solicitor handling probate was also handling the sale of the property? If not, remember that you have two sets of solicitors each following fairly pedantic processes to ensure that no bill is left unpaid, no i left undotted, no t left uncrossed.

I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly the proceeds of the sale of my mum's house appeared in the Executors' bank account, but then, the conveyancing was all we were using a solicitor for: a sibling and I had dealt with the rest of probate. And actually getting to that stage had been a performance, and the conveyancing solicitor was someone I saw socially on a regular basis, and I always think that helps!

Billy_84

Thank you for your reply,

Do you or anyone else know before distribution if residual beneficiaries have to sign off the estate accounts?

SevenOfNine

:j

Billy_84 wrote: »

Thank you for your reply,

Do you or anyone else know before distribution if residual beneficiaries have to sign off the estate accounts?

No. Though we sent ours a copy of the accounts (spreadsheet, all income/expenditure itemised). They were invited to see all the supporting documemtation as well, but could not remove it from our possession, (it was all in chronological order so easy to cross reference).

No-one wanted to (would have delayed distribution if they had).

But all through the process we kept everything transparent.

Billy_84

Thank you for the reply!

Ok so if legally residuary beneficiaries don’t have to sign i take it from your answer it’s seen as common/good practice by the law firm dealing with it and the executor to allow the estate accounts/documentation to at least be seen by the residuary beneficiaries? Or have a copy of it?