Intestate will and potential inheritance (Anglia Research)

ThriftyThree

I have been recently contacted by a company named Anglia Research regarding the unclaimed estate of my late aunt who died without any will (intestate) or known of family members. I agreed to allow them to send me further information and they sent me an agreement to sign, which states they will receive 15% (+VAT) of any assets received if I agree.

For this they agree to take on all risks and do not ask for anything upfront or during their work. They also assure there is no danger of inheriting a debt, which was actually a concern, since my aunt had lived in a care home for many years prior to passing, so I was actually surprised the cost of this had not in itself used up any savings of hers. They did not give any information about the value of the estate. I expect it to be modest, yet since their only gain comes from their percentage of the estate, I would also reason that it must be of some minimal value to make this worth their time?

 

I am mainly writing to see if others have experience of using Anglia Research and other companies in this field and also the pros and cons of using a (presumably) established company like Anglia Research versus trying to claim my share of the estate on my own?

 

I understand that much of what these companies do involves determining family trees and relationships to prove their client’s eligibility. In my case I’m just not sure this is needed? Our family is very small and it is my strong belief that I am the last remaining in my family line, since my father and uncle have already passed and I do not believe there to be any further siblings. That said, I have no personal experience in this area at all, so if specific expertise is likely to be needed, maybe it is better if I do enlist Anglia Research?

 

What additional risks would my perusing this instead of using Anglia Research pose?

 

Plus, if I wish to do this without Anglia, HOW do I actually get started with proving my eligibility? and who would be the right person to contact about this to get things started?

 

Has anyone on here any experience of actually going through this process, if so how was it?

 

Any help and advice would be really appreciated. Thank you in advance.

buffalito

I was contacted by Anglia Research back in 2019 regarding my later mother's cousin. It was a small estate (£25000) and they charged 5%. You can do this yourself by contacting the Bona Vacantia division.
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/bona-vacantia
You'd need to prove the relationship between you and your Aunt with your Birth certificate and your parent's birth and death certificate I think but I'm sure Bona Vacantia would tell you what's needed.

Grumpelstiltskin

Did your uncle have any decendents?
If not and you are 200% sure there will be no one else to inherit you can do it yourself, but you will have to get all the relevant certificates.
Assuming England or Wales you start here.
General Register Office - Online Ordering Service - Login (gro.gov.uk)

Marcon

Have Anglia already applied for letters of administration? If so, you've missed the boat.

Even if they haven't, I'd let them get on with it. At worst you get nothing in monetary terms, but nor do you get any hassle/exposure to any costs; at best you get some unexpected cash.

Mojisola

buffalito said:

You'd need to prove the relationship between you and your Aunt with your Birth certificate and your parent's birth and death certificate I think but I'm sure Bona Vacantia would tell you what's needed.

But you also need to prove that no-one else is entitled to a share. 

Malthusian

For this they agree to take on all risks and do not ask for anything upfront or during their work.

The first part would also be true of hiring an SRA-regulated solicitor to administer the estate, who would not charge 15% + VAT - unless the estate is small. (Though they might want something upfront from you in case the estate can't pay them.)

They also assure there is no danger of inheriting a debt, which was actually a concern, since my aunt had lived in a care home for many years prior to passing, so I was actually surprised the cost of this had not in itself used up any savings of hers.

The only danger of you inheriting your aunt's debts is if you applied to administer the estate and failed to pay her creditors their due (at which point you would become liable as the administrator).

Her assets should not have been fully exhausted by her care fees, as there's a threshold below which the local authority became responsible for her care (varying depending on which country in the UK she lived in).

I expect it to be modest, yet since their only gain comes from their percentage of the estate, I would also reason that it must be of some minimal value to make this worth their time?

I imagine that the way this business works is that occasionally you get a big pay day where 15% of the estate turns out to mean tens or even hundreds of thousands, which makes up for the cases where 15% is a few hundred at best.

Did your aunt own her own home? How many years is "many years"? How expensive was her care home? All those things might give you a very rough idea of whether it is worth taking the job yourself, and should be feasible to find out without the heir hunter. Unless you were totally estranged. (In which case taking the job on yourself runs a higher risk of spending money and time, only to find out that the estate is near-worthless or insolvent.)

TonyMMM

Anglia research are one of the well known companies involved in probate research - up to you whether you use them, or apply to administer the estate and do it yourself. You would need to prove your relationship by getting the evidence (birth/marriage/death certificates of relevant family members  etc.) for a full family tree, and also to make sure any other potentially entitled beneficiaries are accounted for. 

[Deleted User]

ThriftyThree said:

I have been recently contacted by a company named Anglia Research regarding the unclaimed estate of my late aunt who died without any will (intestate) or known of family members. I agreed to allow them to send me further information and they sent me an agreement to sign, which states they will receive 15% (+VAT) of any assets received if I agree.

For this they agree to take on all risks and do not ask for anything upfront or during their work. They also assure there is no danger of inheriting a debt, which was actually a concern, since my aunt had lived in a care home for many years prior to passing, so I was actually surprised the cost of this had not in itself used up any savings of hers. They did not give any information about the value of the estate. I expect it to be modest, yet since their only gain comes from their percentage of the estate, I would also reason that it must be of some minimal value to make this worth their time?

 

I am mainly writing to see if others have experience of using Anglia Research and other companies in this field and also the pros and cons of using a (presumably) established company like Anglia Research versus trying to claim my share of the estate on my own?

 

I understand that much of what these companies do involves determining family trees and relationships to prove their client’s eligibility. In my case I’m just not sure this is needed? Our family is very small and it is my strong belief that I am the last remaining in my family line, since my father and uncle have already passed and I do not believe there to be any further siblings. That said, I have no personal experience in this area at all, so if specific expertise is likely to be needed, maybe it is better if I do enlist Anglia Research?

 

What additional risks would my perusing this instead of using Anglia Research pose?

 

Plus, if I wish to do this without Anglia, HOW do I actually get started with proving my eligibility? and who would be the right person to contact about this to get things started?

 

Has anyone on here any experience of actually going through this process, if so how was it?

 

Any help and advice would be really appreciated. Thank you in advance.

There’s a company called Finders International who seem to be the biggest and have awards for their work. I’d contact them if I were you! 

davilown

Expert101 said:

ThriftyThree said:

I have been recently contacted by a company named Anglia Research regarding the unclaimed estate of my late aunt who died without any will (intestate) or known of family members. I agreed to allow them to send me further information and they sent me an agreement to sign, which states they will receive 15% (+VAT) of any assets received if I agree.

For this they agree to take on all risks and do not ask for anything upfront or during their work. They also assure there is no danger of inheriting a debt, which was actually a concern, since my aunt had lived in a care home for many years prior to passing, so I was actually surprised the cost of this had not in itself used up any savings of hers. They did not give any information about the value of the estate. I expect it to be modest, yet since their only gain comes from their percentage of the estate, I would also reason that it must be of some minimal value to make this worth their time?

 

I am mainly writing to see if others have experience of using Anglia Research and other companies in this field and also the pros and cons of using a (presumably) established company like Anglia Research versus trying to claim my share of the estate on my own?

 

I understand that much of what these companies do involves determining family trees and relationships to prove their client’s eligibility. In my case I’m just not sure this is needed? Our family is very small and it is my strong belief that I am the last remaining in my family line, since my father and uncle have already passed and I do not believe there to be any further siblings. That said, I have no personal experience in this area at all, so if specific expertise is likely to be needed, maybe it is better if I do enlist Anglia Research?

 

What additional risks would my perusing this instead of using Anglia Research pose?

 

Plus, if I wish to do this without Anglia, HOW do I actually get started with proving my eligibility? and who would be the right person to contact about this to get things started?

 

Has anyone on here any experience of actually going through this process, if so how was it?

 

Any help and advice would be really appreciated. Thank you in advance.

There’s a company called Finders International who seem to be the biggest and have awards for their work. I’d contact them if I were you! 

Two posts - both recommending one company. Spam all the way