Possible inheritance claim from a joint account

socratez

Hi all,

My father has 4  adult children of varying ages, with not all siblings being friendly. My sister has a joint account with my dad. She has about £15k of her own money in the joint account in her and our fathers name, she manages his money and bills his bills using his pension which is paid into this account. My father is elderly and does not understand or want to write out a will. My concern is that if he passes suddenly, one of the other siblings (not the one with the joint account) could become an executor and claim half the money in the joint account was my fathers and be able to take it.

What would happen in this case if my dad passed away? Would the sibling be able to claim half the money in the account?

p00hsticks

I think it depends on whether your sister could show that the £15k was hers - how long ago it was put in the joint account and for what reason.  

But if there is a risk that it could cause any contention after your fathers death, isn't the simplest way round this for your sister to keep the money in an account of her own ?

Topsinger

Funds in a joint account automatically pass to the surviving party. The bank will simply remove the name of the deceased from the account. 

Your sister should consider whether having so much of her own money in this joint account is a good idea, given that it would pass to your father if she died. 

Spendless

Why has your sister got £15K of her own money sat in a joint account with your Dad is what I'm curious to know. If there's transactions in and out of that account it must be difficult to keep tabs on what's what. She could apply for a POA in order to help your Dad manage his money. 

Sarahspangles

Joint assets automatically pass to the survivor(s) but half the value may be included in the valuation of the estate.

In fact when my MIL died, all the value of the joint account was included, but that was because her son held the account jointly only so that he could help her with the account.  I think this is a more common scenario than the adult child holding more money in the account than the parent.

I suppose the first test will be the funeral - which account will that be paid from?  If the father doesn’t make a will, will the funeral cost be netted off the estate when it’s distributed?  Is one of the ‘awkward’ siblings likely to apply to administer the estate or will it be left to the supportive daughter?

socratez

(Removed by Forum Team)

It's fair to wonder so I won't take offense. No nefarious or illegal/immoral intentions by my sister, it's just a sum of money she keeps for a rainy day and is easy to access if needed. With low interest rates, until recently, she hasnt made it a priority to open a savings account for it.

Mojisola

socratez said:

My sister has a joint account with my dad.

She has about £15k of her own money in the joint account in her and our fathers name,

she manages his money and bills his bills using his pension which is paid into this account.

This is really messy.

Unless she is keeping meticulous records of how much of his money goes into the account and exactly what it is being spent on, she could get aggravation from siblings.  It's not just 'doing everything right'; it's the need to show that his money was managed correctly if she was ever accused of using it for her own purposes.

It would be wise to separate his and her money - keep the joint account just for his finances and open a new account just for her money.

If it's a simple account, paying practically no interest, there are certainly better places to put £15k!

Keep_pedalling

The joint account can’t be touched by an administrator so your sisters money is safe in that way but your sister should move it into an account of her own in case she died before your father.

The real problem here is your father’s reluctance to make a will as he really needs to appoint executors who can work together. Something that could cause even more issues is the lack of having Lasting Poets of Attorney in place. 

poppystar

Keep_pedalling said:

The joint account can’t be touched by an administrator so your sisters money is safe in that way but your sister should move it into an account of her own in case she died before your father.

The real problem here is your father’s reluctance to make a will as he really needs to appoint executors who can work together. Something that could cause even more issues is the lack of having Lasting Poets of Attorney in place. 

That is a wonderful idea😁. 

sheramber

There can only be an executor if there is a will.

Does your father have an estate to administer-  a house, savings apart from the joint account. other possessions?

Your sister should put her own money in separate  account. It could be her own current account for easy access. That way her money will not be involved with your father's.  especially if there is likely to be any dispute with siblings.

if your father does not understand a will does he have mental capacity to make a Lasting Power  of Attorney to allow someone else to make decisions for him, if necessary.  Note  a LPA ceases on death so does not affect who deals with after after death.

An LPA can be done online much cheaper than using a solicitor and is quite easy if it straightforward.

You need one for finance and one for health.

Mojisola

socratez said:

My father has 4  adult children of varying ages, with not all siblings being friendly.

My concern is that if he passes suddenly, one of the other siblings (not the one with the joint account) could become an executor

Will probate be needed - will his estate be big enough to require it?

It would be worth you and your sister genning up on how to deal with an estate when there isn't a will so that one of you can become administrator if probate is needed.

www.gov.uk/applying-for-probate/if-theres-not-a-will