Transfer on Death?

Cipogirl

Have had a good friend pass away a few weeks ago. When alive she advised me and it would now seem another that she had invested money in our names (she told me she had done this for a few individuals) and that when she died her financial advisor was to make contact fairly soon after to pass these to us? She advised she did this so these monies would not be included in her estate. 

I have contacted the FA but his secretary is quoting data protection and won’t advise if there is an investment in my name? 

I cannot seem to find any information on investments that are set up by an individual in the to be beneficiaries names apart from in USA !!! 

Has anyone ever heard of this as having some more information might help me in getting an answer from the FA? 

Brie

Well as I understand it if someone has died then data protection no longer applies.  But if they hold nothing with your name on it then it appears that everything is in your friend's name and therefore would form part of her estate unless any paperwork can be discovered that shows differently.   Check your emails, texts, bank statements - anything that might help document what you have said has happened.  

I worry that your friend has, perhaps unwittingly, taken your money and that you will have no way to get it back.  

user1977

Brie said:

I worry that your friend has, perhaps unwittingly, taken your money 

I think the OP means these were (effectively) lifetime gifts by the deceased.

Brie

user1977 said:

Brie said:

I worry that your friend has, perhaps unwittingly, taken your money 

I think the OP means these were (effectively) lifetime gifts by the deceased.

Ah!  In which case she will hopefully have logged these somewhere, with a solicitor or something attached to her will perhaps?

Cipogirl

Yes it wasn’t our money it was hers she invested for individuals but she advised they were in our name. I just wanted to know what it might be and how it works. 

Brie

I think you'll need to contact her family or whomever is dealing with her estate and ask them.  It may be that she has a set of investments/pensions somewhere that list each of you as a beneficiary.  That's the only way I can think that she could have done anything as it's difficult to set up investments for family members let alone someone who isn't related.  

Keep_pedalling

Seems a very odd way of going about things, most people just make gifts rather than set up account in other peoples names without giving those people any details. For a start it is the account holder who would be responsible for any taxation on the income on those accounts so how are you supposed to do that if you don’t know anything about the account. Unless she did this over 7 years ago the amount she put into the accounts would still form part of her estate.

I also can’t see any IFA going along with such a scheme, so I suspect they don’t exist.