Nominated person on private penssion

teddydog12

my partner and l had been together thirtyeight years purchased two properties together
He died in tragic circumstances two years ago while on holiday in South Africa. As we were not marriedd his sister
applied for Grant of Probate.My partner had a private pension over thirty years with Scottish Widows i was the nominated beneficiary.
His sister and her son both being executors of his will applied for payment of his death benefit. Scottish Widows did not contact me
but made payment of over £60.000 to his sister in her role as executor. She has refused to make any payment to me while Scottish Widows
say The decision to pay her was final and that it was up to Trustees to decide who should recieve payment.
Many couples who are not legally married may believe that having a nominated person should the worst happen associated with a private pension that this person
would automaticially be entitled to death benefit.
l have engaged two solicitor at great cost but still the excutors state that as Scottish widows paid them they are entitled to keep this payment
Is there anything l can do?

    

Silvertabby

My sympathies on your loss.

What did his Will say?  If that left everything to you, then I can't see how the executor can withold this payment from you.

As for Scottish Widows, it's not the norm for pension trustees to override a valid nomination form and pay benefits to the estate/executor instead - unless the sister has spun them some sort of a yarn?

dunstonh

Is there anything l can do?

A nomination is not binding on the pension provider.   It is an expression of wish which the trustees take into account.  However, expression of wishes can go out of date over time.  Separations, divorces, new relationships etc.  So, the trustees look for a change of circumstances to see if the nomination would still be valid or obsolete.

The Will does not have any legal role with pensions.   However, it does give an indication of what the wishes of the deceased were.    So, the trustees would look at the content of the Will to get an idea.    Were you named as a beneficiary on other things in the Will?   If you were absent from the Will then this would give the trustees something to consider.

You mention you purchased two properties together. Is one of those properties still jointly owned?

Do you have joint banking facilities?

Scottish Widows did not contact me
but made payment of over £60.000 to his sister in her role as executor.

The executor has no claim over the death benefits on a pension. They are paid to the beneficiary.   So, this would indicate that SW has classed the sister as the beneficiary.

Are you sure a nomination for you was made on the pension?  I find it strange that, if you were the nominated beneficiary, and it was challenged by the sister, then the trustees would normally want to hear your side and would normally ask for evidence of linked financials, such as joint property ownership, joint bank accounts etc.   The fact they never contacted you at all, makes me wonder if the nomination actually existed.

Many couples who are not legally married may believe that having a nominated person should the worst happen associated with a private pension that this person
would automaticially be entitled to death benefit.

In the past, a nomination was little more than a name and address and percentage to allocate.  Nowadays, providers accept written instructions explaining the nomination.   That can often be worth doing in unmarried relationships.  Especially if the Will is not a mirror of the nomination.    It can explain inconsistencies rather than leaving them for the trustees to decide.

Thrugelmir

An expression of wish nomination is not legally binding on the pension trustees. The Will may well hold the answers. 

Marcon

teddydog12 said:

my partner and l had been together thirtyeight years purchased two properties together
He died in tragic circumstances two years ago while on holiday in South Africa. As we were not marriedd his sister
applied for Grant of Probate.My partner had a private pension over thirty years with Scottish Widows i was the nominated beneficiary.
His sister and her son both being executors of his will applied for payment of his death benefit. Scottish Widows did not contact me
but made payment of over £60.000 to his sister in her role as executor. She has refused to make any payment to me while Scottish Widows
say The decision to pay her was final and that it was up to Trustees to decide who should recieve payment.
Many couples who are not legally married may believe that having a nominated person should the worst happen associated with a private pension that this person
would automaticially be entitled to death benefit.
l have engaged two solicitor at great cost but still the excutors state that as Scottish widows paid them they are entitled to keep this payment
Is there anything l can do?

    

Are you sure there was a valid will? If so, his sister could only have applied for probate if she was nominated as an executor. Given the length of time you'd been together, did you never discuss wills/what would happen when one of you died (I realise many couples don't)? The fact you weren't married is irrelevant; a will can name anyone as an executor. The fact his sister applied makes me wonder if he actually died intestate? 

If there was a will, it is quite possible that your partner asked for payment to be made to his estate - the payment would still be tax free if payment to the estate was discretionary (i.e. his request was not a binding one). If you've not done so, check here and you can download a copy of the will for £1.50: https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate. Have the executors complied with the terms of that will?

You say you were the nominated beneficiary. Do you have a copy of the nomination?

SW do indeed have the final say - but that doesn't exonerate them from making reasonable enquiries if there is any suggestion parties other than sister and nephew could be potential beneficiaries - and if there is indeed a nomination form in your favour, that should certainly have put them on notice to dig deeper.

No need to engage solicitors, most of whom won't be familiar with the niceties of this scenario. Contact TPAS https://www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk/contacting-us for free, impartial help to see if there are any further actions you can take. 

Albermarle

Are you sure a nomination for you was made on the pension?  I find it strange that, if you were the nominated beneficiary, and it was challenged by the sister, then the trustees would normally want to hear your side and would normally ask for evidence of linked financials, such as joint property ownership, joint bank accounts etc.   The fact they never contacted you at all, makes me wonder if the nomination actually existed.

This is what I was thinking . Whatever the circumstances it seems very strange that Scottish Widows would override the beneficiary nomination , without ever contacting the named person. 

xylophone

https://www.scottishwidows.co.uk/retirement/pension-transfers/apply/retirement/manage-your-account/

Leave your pension to a loved one

Retirement Account allows you to pass on the value of your pension to a loved one when you die, as a lump sum or an income.

What happens when you die

If you die before you are 75, these benefits are normally tax-free. If you die on or after age 75, your benefits are taxable.

It's important to keep us up to date with who you want to leave your pension to in the event of your death, otherwise known as a beneficiary. We'll send you an expression of wish form so you can nominate a beneficiary, and if you want to make changes we can send you a new one. It is important to note that in exercising discretion in applying the benefits, Scottish Widows will not be bound by this expression of wish. Remember to update your will too.

Our dedicated team are ready to help with any questions you have.

Although the Trustees have discretion, it is unusual (even very unusual) for them to ignore the  expressed wishes of the deceased.

Are you sure that you were a nominated beneficiary?

Are you sure that your partner had actually made a will?

How did you own the properties?

teddydog12

l have a letter from SW showing clearly that l was the nominated person. My partner made a will leaving his estate to his sister
proceeeds from the sale of a property She and her son were excutors of the will. Sister refused to give me copy of death certificate
to rpovide to . SW My solicitor sent form to Financial Services Ombudsman but they would not investigate without a legal representative of my late partner. l believed his private pension was not included in his estate, his will did not mention private  pension. l feel SW should have contacted me before they paid benefit to his sister as executor of his will. Does an executor not have a legal responsibility to pay 
me as nominated beneficiary? 

Albermarle

 l feel SW should have contacted me before they paid benefit to his sister as executor of his will. 

It seems almost unbelievable that SW decided to ignore the nominated person without even contacting them .

Maybe it was a just a big blunder on their part ?

dunstonh

l have a letter from SW showing clearly that l was the nominated person. My partner made a will leaving his estate to his sister

that creates the potential for conflict and challenge.   Ideally, in that scenario, I would have encouraged a paragraph of explanation to the expression of wish.

It does introduce the question as to why SW did not communicate with you in respect of the challenge.

My solicitor sent form to Financial Services Ombudsman but they would not investigate without a legal representative of my late partner.

That was the wrong thing to do.   You cannot go straight to complaint with the FOS.  You have to use the complaints process at SW first.   And the FOS can only deal with the legal representative in complaints they handle.   This needed either a direct to SW approach or a legal approach.

 l believed his private pension was not included in his estate, his will did not mention private  pension. 

pensions are outside of the estate 99% of the time (some unusual cases bring it into the estate)

. l feel SW should have contacted me before they paid benefit to his sister as executor of his will. 

That is the usual expectation when the beneficiary is being challenged by someone else.  They would ask you for evidence of relationship/financial links.

Does an executor not have a legal responsibility to pay 
me as nominated beneficiary? 

The executor handles the estate.  The pension is not part of the estate.  Pension providers usually pay the death benefits directly to the beneficiary.  Not the executor.

Your solicitors need to challenge the trustees for failing to act correctly by accepting the challenge without making any attempt to ascertain any facts about the relationship.

greatkingrat

Do you know how long ago the nomination form was made? If it was made a long time ago and hadn't been updated, that may explain why Scottish Widows decided to go with the beneficiary of the will instead.