Administrator not following Intestacy Laws

DKS29

My mother sadly passed away last year. After being a complete !!!!!! during my younger years, for the last decade of her life we had a great relationship.
My sister lived closer to my mum, so I had no problem with her becoming the administrator. Her only asset was the flat she was living in. After it was finally sold, and one day previous to the completion date, she informed me that as I had gifts of money from my mother (going back 15-20 years ago) she would only be distributing me 50k from a 160k final estate amount ( we are the only 2 siblings and she had no partner or will)
It may have been that amount, I really don't know. The only evidence she seems to have is a handwritten letter she never sent to me amongst her things dated 2004 about money she gave me.
Sorry about the length of my first post

Thanks

DKS

Marcon

DKS29 said:

My mother sadly passed away last year. After being a complete !!!!!! during my younger years, for the last decade of her life we had a great relationship.
My sister lived closer to my mum, so I had no problem with her becoming the administrator. Her only asset was the flat she was living in. After it was finally sold, and one day previous to the completion date, she informed me that as I had gifts of money from my mother (going back 15-20 years ago) she would only be distributing me 50k from a 160k final estate amount ( we are the only 2 siblings and she had no partner or will)
It may have been that amount, I really don't know. The only evidence she seems to have is a handwritten letter she never sent to me amongst her things dated 2004 about money she gave me.
Sorry about the length of my first post

Thanks

DKS

If they were gifts, they don't impact on your entitlement under the rules of intestacy. Whether it is worthwhile agreeing to let some part of the gifts be 'offset', for the sake of harmony with your sister, is your call - otherwise you are entitled to half the money.

DKS29

Marcon said:

DKS29 said:

My mother sadly passed away last year. After being a complete !!!!!! during my younger years, for the last decade of her life we had a great relationship.
My sister lived closer to my mum, so I had no problem with her becoming the administrator. Her only asset was the flat she was living in. After it was finally sold, and one day previous to the completion date, she informed me that as I had gifts of money from my mother (going back 15-20 years ago) she would only be distributing me 50k from a 160k final estate amount ( we are the only 2 siblings and she had no partner or will)
It may have been that amount, I really don't know. The only evidence she seems to have is a handwritten letter she never sent to me amongst her things dated 2004 about money she gave me.
Sorry about the length of my first post

Thanks

DKS

If they were gifts, they don't impact on your entitlement under the rules of intestacy. Whether it is worthwhile agreeing to let some part of the gifts be 'offset', for the sake of harmony with your sister, is your call - otherwise you are entitled to half the money.

Thank you for the reply, appreciate it. The money was paid over the counter by mother into my account over a series of months in 2004/5. I don't dispute that happened, but I lived my mother again after from 2012/16 and we made peace.
There were no formal agreements etc so I just can't understand why she would be prepared to take it to court 

I have tried the offset but no joy

[Deleted User]

What does the letter say? 

DKS29

I say letter, I have only seen the part that my sister took a photo of and sent to me.
Says that I asked her for money for rent, bills, Christmas and whittled down what money she had. 

Sea_Shell

So is your sibling saying that you've had £30,000 from your Mum over the years.   Can she evidence this?   (doesn't change the intestacy rules, just trying to understand her thinking.)

How much do you think you've had, or know you've had?   Much less than this?


So she believes that your 50% of the £160k (£80k), should be reduced by this amount, leaving you with only £50k.    I presume they think they can just then keep this extra £30k for themselves?!?

Keep_pedalling

If someone dies with an outstanding loan owed by one of two beneficiaries, then the amount of the outstanding loan forms part of the estate, and is included in the distribution.

So if the flat is worth £160k and the loan was £30k then the total estate is £190k and your sister gets £95k and you get what remains from the proceeds of the flat which is £65k not £50k. 

unforeseen

Keep_pedalling said:

If someone dies with an outstanding loan owed by one of two beneficiaries, then the amount of the outstanding loan forms part of the estate, and is included in the distribution.

So if the flat is worth £160k and the loan was £30k then the total estate is £190k and your sister gets £95k and you get what remains from the proceeds of the flat which is £65k not £50k. 

Currently there is no evidence that it was a loan

SevenOfNine

Several months before she died my MiL gave one of her 2 sons £16K to buy a car. No loan agreement, so presumably a gift (& a secret one at that). When FiL died not long afterwards that secret came out but like it or not there was NO paperwork to support it as a loan, therefore it was treated as a gift.

Recently my mum died, she'd given £5k to one of my 2 brothers 18 months or so previously. There was a loan agreement, signed by both, witnessed, & they both had a copy.......& I had the original, because I wrote it! 

Executors/administrators can't just arbitrarily decide gifts should be knocked off a beneficiaries 'share' of the estate. How do you know your mum wasn't equally as generous with your sister over the years.  You may need your own solicitor to independently ask her questions, emotions of what sister thinks is 'fair' aside.

A full copy of what your mother wrote would be a start.

Keep_pedalling

unforeseen said:

Keep_pedalling said:

If someone dies with an outstanding loan owed by one of two beneficiaries, then the amount of the outstanding loan forms part of the estate, and is included in the distribution.

So if the flat is worth £160k and the loan was £30k then the total estate is £190k and your sister gets £95k and you get what remains from the proceeds of the flat which is £65k not £50k. 

Currently there is no evidence that it was a loan

Yes I realise that, I was just pointing out that even if it was, the OPs sister has got her sums horribly wrong. 

DKS29

Thank you for all your replies. Nope the debts my mum had were minimal and all in her name. A couple of credit cards,can overdraft and a Littlewoods account totalling around 4k. The sale collapsed a few times so added to that were bills, and maintenance payments as it's leasehold The large portion of the house sale went to Sanctuary housing who are the biggest crooks going. Charges upon charges for improvement works that no one in the block could afford so added on to the monthly payments.
My sister was messaging me all the way through the sale, mentioned the process several times and how it would be divided equally. Only mentioned the day before what she would be doing.
Like I mentioned, she sent me a screenshot of some bits of paper which must be dated around 2005 where she detailed how I had kept asking her for money and whittled down her money which she had given me for various things. 
My sister also mentioned that she had credit card statements with stuff on she never owned. Last point she raised is that whilst living there in 2015 there was a letter addressed to me about an equity release company. She asked me to look into it for her. Nothing was ever done about it. That's all I know. I just can't work out in what circumstances she could do this or if a solicitor on her behalf would take it on