To process my father's will does my mum need to post copies of all financial documents to executor?

Keep_pedalling

Robert_McGeddon said:

OP, I echo what others have said. You are in a tricky situation and posting on this forum is a good first step.

To make things more complicated, I think you should consider the IHT implications on your mother's behalf. An estate of £2.3M (maybe more if your Mum has personal assets) will likely attract a high level of IHT when she passes. Probably in excess of £500K. Reconsidering her will is important as is considering a Deed of Variation on your Father's estate and possibly gifting monies over the coming years. Probably other things too.

Would she take advice from a solicitor (preferably STEPS)? Perhaps she would consult one regarding her will and the other aspects could be discussed too.

She really does need to take independent professional advice on IHT planning, but a deed of variation is not going to help in this situation, unless the OPs father made PET gifts in the last 7 years. If he did then those will be subject to IHT unless the children divert some of their inheritance, via a DoV, to their mother to bring all of his non spousal gifts within his NRB. 

Autumn868

Hello and thankyou everyone very much for your comments/advice.

In regards 1stly to my mum speaking to a financial planner to try minimising the IHT owed when she passes via gifting...
The core assets are the house (which she lives in), a slightly smaller house (which has been rented out for 30+ years), and then cash savings/shares/and pensions.
We had previously (over past years) mentioned her gifting various assets to myself & my siblings, however by her nature she doesn't trust anyone who's not family (and so as she dislikes the partners of my siblings she simply never actually takes any real steps towards gifting anything).
It's a sad situation, and one that will ultimately happen in the future, however she moves in extremely small steps, and so making actual real phsyical 'movement' on anything is simply not her style.

In regards to me contacting the executor, the contact with him was by my mum via an email from her to him & a phonecall from her to him (made 1-2 weeks ago).
To me he is simply a name, a name of a person who my parents were aquaintances with 25-30years ago, but somone who I never met, and so have no connection with him via which to contact him.

I know that he did something with the will (accepting his duty), not sure what officially it was, but whatever it was gave 'permission' for the cremation of my father's body to go ahead (as apparently that couldn't be authorised until he approved it).

My mum hasn't left the house for 6+ weeks due to risk of the virus, so hasn't posted anything (a copy of the will) to him though.
She may of sent him photos of it via email, although I highly doubt that.


I know it may seen easy to just 'follow procedures', however sadly when speaking to her she simply brushes off things in a vague way, which ultimately ends the discussion, even when I try to pursue it...
And so the line which she quite simply takes & believes is that things will sort themselves out, the banks & firms which hold my dad's money will deal with things and it will all sort itself out, and that if the executor needs any documents he would've asked for them from her, but he hasn't, thus he doesn't need anything.

Moreover all I know about the guy is that hes aged 65-75 (not sure what state of mobility of health he's in), but can guess that his core focus in life is his own family, and so matters relating to the will (from 1-2 weeks ago) could likely already be forgotten in his mind.

As it seems both him & my mum take the view that:
If the other person needed them to do/send anything they would've asked | Thus it's basically a status-quo stalemate now.

But that puts me in a deeply uncomfortable position of how to get things moving, without causing deep insensitivity.

xylophone

the banks & firms which hold my dad's money will deal with things and it will all sort itself out, and that if the executor needs any documents he would've asked for them from her, but he hasn't, thus he doesn't need anything.

They won't. And your mother has no legal right to access his sole accounts.

How does she envisage that you and your siblings will receive your inheritance?

Have the banks/registrars been advised of your father's death?

And HMRC? Was he on self assessment?

Do you have the executor's telephone number/e-mail address?

Keep_pedalling

Autumn868 said:

Hello and thankyou everyone very much for your comments/advice.

In regards 1stly to my mum speaking to a financial planner to try minimising the IHT owed when she passes via gifting...
The core assets are the house (which she lives in), a slightly smaller house (which has been rented out for 30+ years), and then cash savings/shares/and pensions.
We had previously (over past years) mentioned her gifting various assets to myself & my siblings, however by her nature she doesn't trust anyone who's not family (and so as she dislikes the partners of my siblings she simply never actually takes any real steps towards gifting anything).
It's a sad situation, and one that will ultimately happen in the future, however she moves in extremely small steps, and so making actual real phsyical 'movement' on anything is simply not her style.

In regards to me contacting the executor, the contact with him was by my mum via an email from her to him & a phonecall from her to him (made 1-2 weeks ago).
To me he is simply a name, a name of a person who my parents were aquaintances with 25-30years ago, but somone who I never met, and so have no connection with him via which to contact him.

I know that he did something with the will (accepting his duty), not sure what officially it was, but whatever it was gave 'permission' for the cremation of my father's body to go ahead (as apparently that couldn't be authorised until he approved it).

My mum hasn't left the house for 6+ weeks due to risk of the virus, so hasn't posted anything (a copy of the will) to him though.
She may of sent him photos of it via email, although I highly doubt that.


I know it may seen easy to just 'follow procedures', however sadly when speaking to her she simply brushes off things in a vague way, which ultimately ends the discussion, even when I try to pursue it...
And so the line which she quite simply takes & believes is that things will sort themselves out, the banks & firms which hold my dad's money will deal with things and it will all sort itself out, and that if the executor needs any documents he would've asked for them from her, but he hasn't, thus he doesn't need anything.

Moreover all I know about the guy is that hes aged 65-75 (not sure what state of mobility of health he's in), but can guess that his core focus in life is his own family, and so matters relating to the will (from 1-2 weeks ago) could likely already be forgotten in his mind.

As it seems both him & my mum take the view that:
If the other person needed them to do/send anything they would've asked | Thus it's basically a status-quo stalemate now.

But that puts me in a deeply uncomfortable position of how to get things moving, without causing deep insensitivity.

it is difficult, I doubt whether the executor knows how difficult winding up this up this estate is going to be, it is far from a straight forward estate and it sounds like he is going to get little help from your mother.

is he also the executor of your mother’s estate?

Mojisola

Autumn868 said:

In regards to me contacting the executor, the contact with him was by my mum via an email from her to him & a phonecall from her to him (made 1-2 weeks ago).
To me he is simply a name, a name of a person who my parents were aquaintances with 25-30years ago, but somone who I never met, and so have no connection with him via which to contact him.

I know that he did something with the will (accepting his duty), not sure what officially it was, but whatever it was gave 'permission' for the cremation of my father's body to go ahead (as apparently that couldn't be authorised until he approved it).

I don't understand this.  Usually the person who gives notification of the death and has the death certificate arranges the funeral.  Wills aren't always looked at until after the funeral - that's why it's not a good idea to have the funeral arrangements in the will.

relaxtwotribes

Who has the original of the will?
Is there only one executor?
Please clarify, does the will leave the NRB to the three of you, or does it state £325,000?  Sometime in the future a letter to the executor from the three of you asking for your £325,000 to be paid into your 3 bank accounts may wake him up.

Autumn868

Whilst hopefully it wouldn't come to this....

Hypothetically what would happen if this current status-quo stalemate between my mum & the executor remained like this for the future months (with both thinking they didn't need to do anything since the other person hadn't asked them to)?

Would there actually be any 'external catalyst' that'd cause action to have to be taken?

xylophone

Hypothetically what would happen if this current status-quo stalemate between my mum & the executor remained like this for the future months (with both thinking they didn't need to do anything since the other person hadn't asked them to)?

You wouldn't get your inheritance?

Would there actually be any 'external catalyst' that'd cause action to have to be taken?

Was your father in self assessment? HMRC will require a tax return.

Was your father in receipt of a state pension?

Mojisola

Although he has said that he will take on the role of executor, it doesn't sound as if he has done anything about it.

Try Keep_pedalling's advice about asking him if he'd like to renounce the role so that you can take over.  It can be quite a lot of work and, if he hasn't been left any inheritance, he will have to do the work for free.

ladyholly

I think in your place I would see if you can persuade your mum to see a solicitor as she really needs professional advice both with regard to her own will and your fathers. If she will  i would further suggest that if possible you are with her as it would have to be a phone consultation at present.

As an asideThe land resistry also need to be informed of your fathers death.