Heir Hunter questions.

Rusty190

A pal has been contacted by a Heir Hunter (HH) company regarding potential inheritance from a deceased person who she has never heard of.

Company documentation seems legitimate.

Surname of deceased tallies with her surname.

Deceased's name appears on the Bona Vacantia list - assuming it's the same person.

She's undecided if she should sign the enclosed forms giving HHs the go ahead to act as she's uncomfortable disclosing information regarding other relatives information (there are some divisions/historical fall outs within the family) and concerned regarding "unintended consequences" - though she doesn't say what she thinks those might be.

She's not been asked for anything upfront, just an agreement to pay 6% plus Vat from her payout - if there is any to be had.

Are there any potential downsides to this, if she does sign? She is not in receipt of any benefits of any sort.

How do HHs decide which "cases" to pursue and which to ignore? - they've clearly already invested some time and money in tracking her down and on the introduction pack they posted out to her.

All thoughts, advice and recommendations gratefully received.

marcia_

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6652855/heir-hunter-questions

personally if I didn't know the person and didn't feel confident in claiming myself I would sign and let the heir hunter do the work.

twopenny

I would write back to them (not phone because that discloses the private number) and explain that they are unwilling to disclose other people's information when they are not in friendly contact.

If it's genuine do they specify the names? It seems a bit odd that they have been able to find the one address and not the other. I guess they could be looking for a quick way of dealing with a small amount.

Have you checked the address given against the companies house register?

Just type the name of the company+ the address into a search. See if the address tallies with the name.

You can also copy the address into Google street view and see if the office exists.

Check if the relatives addresses are on the electoral register. If they are a genuine company would get them from there.

There's more detail on how to check here

https://www.yourmoney.com/saving-banking/contacted-by-an-heir-hunter-how-to-tell-if-its-genuine/

Baldytyke88

Red flags include demands for upfront fees, unsolicited emails with poor grammar, and promises of massive, immediate payouts. Always verify the company via official registers, such as Companies House, and never pay money upfront, as legitimate firms only get paid from the estate.

Not sure why the hesitancy, if the company checks out, it could be £10 or it could be £100k

Keep_pedalling

If you don’t provide the details of other possible beneficiaries it just lead to more work for them which could add delay and additional costs so less paid out.

Grumpelstiltskin

You don't know if you are the only person the Heir Hunters have contacted or if they have found other relatives and contacted them.

If the people are in the UK it is relatively easy to find most of them .