Contesting a Will as Next-of-Kin

Robin9

Presumably you completed  this box

• if there’s no surviving spouse or civil partner or their spouse or civil partner is not able to deal with their affairs, the name and address of their next of kin

74jax

RomfordNavy said:

Thrugelmir said:

Presumably you claimed the refund in your name (somehow?).  

No just did the simple Tell-us-once system, there are no options as far as I remember.  This is just the default behaviour of the system.  It looks like the system is actually designed to encourage the family member notifying the death to intermeddle in the estate.

Some other cheques have turned-up in the deceased name and I have just paid them into the deceased bank account, I now wonder if that counted as intermeddleing.

Yes it is.

Why would you not notify the beneficiaries so the deceased can be buried, but notify TellusOnce and be receiving cheques?

None of this makes sence.

Yes, doing the paperwork and paying in cheques is intermedling.  No, telling the beneficiaries there is no executor is not intermedling.

Be aware once the beneficiaries are involved their solicitors will go through everything so make sure you have everything you've done because they will check and check again.

I would also suggest changing solicitors, yours seem useless. 

BooJewels

Genuine question, as I don't actually know the answer myself.  Is it still intermeddling if you're not actually an executor in the first place?  I thought - and I certainly ain't no lawyer - that it was a specific act for an executor - basically, once they started doing things on an estate, they lost the right to renounce. 

If the OP is doing things as a well meaning relative, is that still an act of 'intermeddling'?

I was also reading something earlier on Age UK (had a question of my own about executorship) that if someone doesn't want to act as an executor, they can appoint an attorney to act on their behalf.  This is the form: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-pa11-apply-for-power-of-attorney-will

maman

I can't believe that @RomfordNavy would get into any trouble if they were to explain the situation to the beneficiaries either directly or through the solicitors. If he says he acted in good faith by informing Tell us Once as he thought he should as named NoK then that's quite innocuous. The (charity) beneficiaries also need to be told that the Executors have dropped out and also ask for a ball park figure of what they can spend on a funeral. I'm sure once charities are involved they'll be familiar with dealing with such cases. Just dithering about doesn't seem to be getting anywhere at all. If the concern is that the family aren't supposed to know who the beneficiaries are then ask the will writing company to inform the beneficiaries so that a funeral can be arranged. It should end up with the same outcome. 

RomfordNavy

BooJewels said:

Not quite sure how you got a road tax refund.  I've recently used the Tell Us Once service and just got a letter from DVLA addressed to the 'estate of' asking me to make sure the car was registered and taxed appropriately, if it had changed hands or been SORNed etc.  So presumably the car has been sold or taken off road or something since the deceased passed? 

If you are worried about intermeddling by making one phone call to the beneficiaries - surely that horse is well down the road by now if you're doing things with their car and things that generate cheques to be posted directly to you 100+ miles away?

Although it's also true to say that there are so many twists in this thread now, I don't know what the real story is any more.

Nope nothing has been sold, the car remains in it's garage, all I have done is the straight-forward Tell-us-once as I was told to do by the Registrar when I registered the death.

RomfordNavy

Thrugelmir said:

Why are you receiving the cheques?  Why are you notifying of the death and handling the deceased's affairs?  

I am notifying of the death using the Tell-us-once system as I was told to do by the Registrar when I registered the death, that is all I have done.

RomfordNavy

Robin9 said:

Presumably you completed  this box

• if there’s no surviving spouse or civil partner or their spouse or civil partner is not able to deal with their affairs, the name and address of their next of kin

Well yes I quite rightly might have ticked that box.

RomfordNavy

maman said:

I can't believe that @RomfordNavy would get into any trouble if they were to explain the situation to the beneficiaries either directly or through the solicitors. If he says he acted in good faith by informing Tell us Once as he thought he should as named NoK then that's quite innocuous.

I told Tell-us-once because I had been instructed to do so by the registrar when registering the death.

74jax

I think, as many posters have asked before, English is not your first language.

On registering the death, you would not have been instructed to use TellusOnce service, it's voluntary. It's exceptionally easy and very useful - for those dealing with the estate.

It's sounds like a simple 'lost in translation' situation.

I would contact the beneficiaries - there's no reason why you can't know who they are at all.  Explain what happened, apologise for starting the paperwork but explain you won't be doing any more and hand it over to them. And walk away from anything.

Forward all letters and any bills you now get (pension /allowance to be paid back etc) to them and don't do anything else - get them deal with it. 

BooJewels

RomfordNavy said:

maman said:

I can't believe that @RomfordNavy would get into any trouble if they were to explain the situation to the beneficiaries either directly or through the solicitors. If he says he acted in good faith by informing Tell us Once as he thought he should as named NoK then that's quite innocuous.

I told Tell-us-once because I had been instructed to do so by the registrar when registering the death.

As I said, I've just done it myself and they don't instruct you to use it - my registrar actually gave me alternative methods I could use, if I chose to - including sending me a printed letter that I could send on, if I didn't have a computer.