Gifts, selling or inheritance

Rajix

Hello, I'm looking for some advice or input on something I'm unsure about. Unfortunately, my father is terminally ill with cancer and he has a few months to live. As far as I am aware his will and affairs are in order. I've been to see him today and he's made a strange request. He wants to sell me his car for £1 and have the details of it transferred to me. He thinks there will be some tax due or some other bill. Can anyone shed some light on why he would think this? I don't understand why the car can't be dealt with through his estate and normal channels. Thanks

Keep_pedalling

More info required, Do you have a rough idea of the value of his estate? What is his marital status? 

If he wants to gift the car before he dies that is no problem it won’t make any difference to any IHT that might be due on his estate, and a token payment makes no difference either as it effectively reduces his gift by £1 and adds a £1 to his cash holdings. 

Rajix

No, I don't know the value. He owns his apartment but it's one of those retirement associations so i'd say the value is 70-100k - He's not married but has a partner of 30 years and they have separate houses. It's just confusing why he's making this request. Is it likely that he's just confused over something he's read somewhere? he's 74 years but he's pretty sharp.

Olinda99

It's may be because you are allowed to give away 3,000 pounds a year which won't be counted for inheritance tax purposes 

If you didn't give any way last year that 3000 can be carried forward to make it six thousand

 so if he gifted you the car and as long as it was 6,000 or so he would avoid inheritance tax on that amount of money

Keep_pedalling

Rajix said:

No, I don't know the value. He owns his apartment but it's one of those retirement associations so i'd say the value is 70-100k - He's not married but has a partner of 30 years and they have separate houses. It's just confusing why he's making this request. Is it likely that he's just confused over something he's read somewhere? he's 74 years but he's pretty sharp.

It sounds like his estate will be below IHT tertiary, he has a NRB of £325k and assuming his estate is going to his children an additional residential NRB which is worth at least the value of his current property (could be more if he downsized after April 2027).

just one more question was he widowed?  

sassyblue

Rajix said:

Hello, I'm looking for some advice or input on something I'm unsure about. Unfortunately, my father is terminally ill with cancer and he has a few months to live. As far as I am aware his will and affairs are in order. I've been to see him today and he's made a strange request. He wants to sell me his car for £1 and have the details of it transferred to me. He thinks there will be some tax due or some other bill. Can anyone shed some light on why he would think this? I don't understand why the car can't be dealt with through his estate and normal channels. Thanks

When people want to do things like that it's usually to annoy someone else from getting the proper value of the item.  Is there someone who wants the car and your father definitely doesn't want them to have it?