Beneficiary turned 18

Spendless

I'm so sorry to hear your latest update brooke68. I feared this was the case, but I was hoping very much I was wrong. 
Totally understand you won't be able to comment further since it's now a police matter, but I hope there is some sort of resolution for your daughter's inheritance

Sea_Shell

Oh!!  😲

I realise that you can't discuss what is now a live police investigation, but once it's resolved, one way or the other, maybe you can come back and let us know how it all panned out.

Good luck!!!♥️

xylophone

My husband just received a message from one of the trustees to say that she hadn’t replied because the matter is in the hands of the police. 

I presume that your own solicitor will be writing to the Trustees so as to obtain formal confirmation of what has happened.

https://www.irwinmitchell.com/personal/will-trust-estate-disputes/trust-disputes/trustees

Sea_Shell

I realise that the OP won't be back to comment, but would 2 trustees usually have joint and severable liability in respect of the funds?   So could they both be in trouble even if one were the "guilty" party?

I'd be very worried if I were the "innocent" trustee!!

HampshireH

Hopefully you will now be fully kept in the loop.

Goodluck with it all. Hopefully you get a resolution. If it's with the police the second trustee must have actioned that.

xylophone

but would 2 trustees usually have joint and severable liability in respect of the funds?

Below seems relevant.

 https://www.sanctuarytrustlaw.com/new-blog/trustee-duties

In addition to the duties, trustees should also be aware that they are liable for the actions and decisions undertaken by the Trust. This means that the debts and liabilities incurred by the trustee are the trustee’s own debts.

In the situation where there are multiple trustees, the trustees are jointly and severally liable for properly incurred liabilities - that is, all trustees are responsible for each others decisions in respect to the Trust. This means that trustees are equally liable and if one trustee has met that liability, they may recover the shares from their co-trustees.

If however the debt is not properly incurred, co-contribution may not apply and the liability will fall on the trustee who acted inappropriately.

RetSol

My husband just received a message from one of the trustees to say that she hadn’t replied because the matter is in the hands of the police. Looks like all our worst fears were right. For obvious reasons, I won’t be posting any further updates. Thank you to everyone who has tried to help

I'm really sorry to hear this, @brooke88.  The Forumites' instincts (and yours) were more accurate than mine.   What a mess.  I hope that your daughter is able to obtain restitution.  Both trustees are on the hook for this. 

sammyjammy

As others has said please update thread as when you are able, I hope it works out ok.  The excuse of not replying as they were involving the police is rubbish, as soon as they knew there was an issue your daughter or you as her parent should have been informed.

Spendless

This thread has made me feel so sad. I don't know if it's because I have an older son and a recently turned 18yo daughter too and imagine them in this situation.

Whilst I understand the OP can't comment further, I was wondering just as a generalisation what people can do if their children are left money and aren't overly comfortable with the trustees from the beginning and don't trust them to do their job correctly? I'm guessing the answer is nothing, just bide your time till the kids become adults and hope you were wrong?

It's not really applicable in our situation as the 'children' of the family are all now 18+ but I was interested in what the answer would be. 

Sea_Shell

Spendless said:

This thread has made me feel so sad. I don't know if it's because I have an older son and a recently turned 18yo daughter too and imagine them in this situation.

Whilst I understand the OP can't comment further, I was wondering just as a generalisation what people can do if their children are left money and aren't overly comfortable with the trustees from the beginning and don't trust them to do their job correctly? I'm guessing the answer is nothing, just bide your time till the kids become adults and hope you were wrong?

It's not really applicable in our situation as the 'children' of the family are all now 18+ but I was interested in what the answer would be. 

I think what we can take from this thread is the need for transparent updates and a little scrutiny of the accounts.   

I don't know for sure, but I would have thought that even if the beneficiary isn't entitled to the money yet, they (or their parents) would (should) at least be entitled to see regular statements and valuations of investments.    That should "keep them honest"!

If a trustee refused to give this information, that should ring warning bells, and there hopefully is a process that can be followed to have them removed, before it all goes Pete Tong.

Just googled and found this...

How To Remove A Trustee - Today's Wills and Probate (todayswillsandprobate.co.uk)