DWP asking for money from estate

Keep_pedalling

Ialwaysgetdone wrote: »

Another thought I've had is that as it is a joint bank account does that make a difference? Would they only be allowed to take into account half of what was in it at date of death?

Depends on why it is joint account, if it was set up so someone could simply help manage her affairs then the money belongs to the estate, if it was for the more tradition use of a joint account then it belongs to the surviving account holder. If the later was the case the money raised for the funeral should not have been placed there

What is the relationship of the deceased and the joint account holder, and who set up the funding page?

Ialwaysgetdone

Keep_pedalling wrote: »

Depends on why it is joint account, if it was set up so someone could simply help manage her affairs then the money belongs to the estate, if it was for the more tradition use of a joint account then it belongs to the surviving account holder. If the later was the case the money raised for the funeral should not have been placed there

What is the relationship of the deceased and the joint account holder, and who set up the funding page?

Husband and wife. Yes it was changed to joint account so as to manage it more easily after she was gone, it was on the advice of someone, either MacMillan or the bank or someone else other than just thinking about that themselves.
She set up the funding page herself stating what the money was going to be for. I don't know what the terms of it are.
I wouldn't be surprised if there was something she failed to tell DWP because she was so ill that she just wouldn't have been able to deal with letters that came or she would have put them to one side and forgot or she may even have been in hospital because she was in and out constantly. I think she was declared fit to work in her absence even.

Keep_pedalling

Ialwaysgetdone wrote: »

Husband and wife. Yes it was changed to joint account so as to manage it more easily after she was gone, it was on the advice of someone, either MacMillan or the bank or someone else other than just thinking about that themselves.
She set up the funding page herself stating what the money was going to be for. I don't know what the terms of it are.
I wouldn't be surprised if there was something she failed to tell DWP because she was so ill that she just wouldn't have been able to deal with letters that came or she would have put them to one side and forgot or she may even have been in hospital because she was in and out constantly. I think she was declared fit to work in her absence even.

Thanks for the clarification, are there any other joint assets such as a house?

Ialwaysgetdone

Keep_pedalling wrote: »

Thanks for the clarification, are there any other joint assets such as a house?

No, the house is only in husband's name

Keep_pedalling

Ialwaysgetdone wrote: »

No, the house is only in husband's name

In that case, no one actually needs to do anything as far as administering the estate is concerned, so her husband should simply write informing the DWP that the estate is insolvent and that there is no administrator.

SouthWester

I would let the bank know NOT to pay any demand for payment from the DWP - my mother died earlier this year and the DWP demanded repayment of an overpayment of her pension straight away from her bank, before even writing to me as executor. They're not known for their tact.

Malthusian

getmore4less wrote: »

what were the terms of the funding page?

That may actually count as trust money outside the estate.

I can't see how. The money was raised for the OP's relative's sole benefit and had already been paid into their personal bank account at the time of their death. Money held in trust for you as the sole beneficiary is generally no different from your own money when it comes to debts.

It seems largely moot given that funeral costs have priority over the DWP. However if there is any left after paying for the funeral, the creditors will have claim on that.

Rich2808

The DWP really are a pain - and are just over the top re getting refunds on small amounts. If only the Govt put as much effort into getting big corporations to pay their corporation taxes.

My aunt died last year and they wrote back within 48 hours of being notified of her death seeking repayment of her final week's pension - a whole £120. She also received an Irish pension - they continue to pay pensions to the estate in Ireland for six weeks to cover things like funeral costs and to avoid these overpayment issues as people often can't deal with these things under after a funeral.

My aunt was an NHS nurse for 35 years before she retired to Ireland. Thanks for your service!

It wasn't the money - it was just the general principle and insensitivity. The Irish system - where pensions are paid to surviving spouses/executors - for 6 weeks to cover funeral costs (and avoiding overpayments if people report things late) is just so much more civilised and decent!

Ialwaysgetdone

Thanks for the replies. In the end there was so much different information about what is right, what should be right, what some people would do etc plus loads of other stressful stuff to deal with because of the death that we ended up paying it on her behalf just to have one less thing to worry about. However, now another demand for repayment has come from DWP, this time for two lots of PIP money that has been paid by mistake after her death despite them being informed by the registrar when the death was registered. Around £220, it's never ending.
Two months after her death we are still waiting on the decision of the insurance even though we know it's going to be a refusal to pay anything anyway and we have still not had the ashes which the funeral director keeps making excuses about and which I find a bit disturbing to be honest. Funeral bill was paid long ago.

[Deleted User]

The registrar doesn't inform DWP of a death! That's the next of kind responsibility.