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Original poster

I have received a letter out of the blue about my mums unclaimed private pension

34 replies

pud12342 · 29/07/2020 21:43

Mum was 58 when she died 5 years ago. I have received a letter today from Aviva saying that they may owe me money for an unclaimed pension. I called them and it turns out it’s 3 unclaimed pensions that where all taken out in 1988. I am thinking that knowing my mum she would have put very little into them as we where pretty skint growing up. They are apparently sending me some forms to fill out and I will need to send death certificate and probate cert. it seems bonkers that they have only just been in touch. Has this happened to anyone else. Just wondering how much form filling is involved and what are the time frames. I know it sounds daft but just getting the letter bought back the grief of losing mum. I don’t want the hassle of all this for what I am guessing will be a very small amount

OP posts:
gamerchick · 29/07/2020 21:45

Wouldn't she want you to have it though? I'm sorry it's made you feel bad Flowers

backaftera2yearbreak · 29/07/2020 21:49

Your mum would want you to have it 💖

CaffeineInfusion · 29/07/2020 21:50

I had similar after my brother died. One form. That was it.

ageingdisgracefully · 29/07/2020 21:50

A scam?.

AbbieFB · 29/07/2020 21:51

There may have been a lump sum death benefit?

I wonder why there were 3?

I’m sorry it’s bought back your grief but your Mum would want you to have it.

FlibbertyGiblets · 29/07/2020 21:52

It is money that they do not own. It is yours.
Even if it is a modest amount, your Mum would want you to have it. And who knows how much it could be - 32 years accruing might be a bit more than you think? I don't know.

I'm so sorry, the hurt is painful.

Mamette · 29/07/2020 21:53

It sounds as if you’re a bit in shock from how this has raked up all your grief over your mum Flowers

Maybe they’re contacting you at this point because the policy is only maturing now.

MrsGrindah · 29/07/2020 21:56

Completely understand your feelings. Try to reframe it..it’s a lovely thought to know your Mums hard earned money ( no matter the amount) will go to the people she loved.

Iwalkinmyclothing · 29/07/2020 21:57

Is there a time limit by which you have to respond? If not, or if there is one which would allow for this, I would suggest you put the forms etc aside for now and give yourself some time to deal with the unexpected contact and the triggering of grief it has caused. And then have a think about what you want to do. I'm sure your mum would want you to have it, but also that she would want even more for you to be happy and make a choice you were content with.

I'm really sorry for your loss and that this contact has made you feel that pain so sharply again Flowers

Original poster
pud12342 · 29/07/2020 21:57

I know. The rational part of me says fill the form in and send the docs. The irrational part of me thinks bury your head. It hurts too much
I have been wracking my brain thinking what mum was doing in1988. She did own a business around that time but it was not successful and closed within 3 years. It didn’t make much at all.
The letter was from Aviva and it was Aviva I called as I googled the number to check. They told me that the original pension company was friends provident but Aviva too them over in 2017

OP posts:
Lookyloo · 29/07/2020 22:01

I've two tiny pensions and as I don't expect to live to retirement age, they will go to my dd. One is about 9k and one about £900. Second one is with Aviva too.

Lookyloo · 29/07/2020 22:03

Her Mum died 5 years ago.

Starface · 29/07/2020 22:03

It's the shock and it brings it all back when you think you have moved on. Sit with that, there is no rush here.

But in a week or two, fill in the form. Take the money. It is yours (definitely not theirs). Go on a lovely holiday, raise a glass. Thank your mother for being that blessed being that just keeps on giving. We cannot count what they do for us, long beyond the grave. God bless our Mums.

Greenkit · 29/07/2020 22:09

Think if it as a gift from your mum and blow it on new clothes or a holiday, depending on the amount.

MrsGrindah · 29/07/2020 22:09

@Starface That made me cry. Mums gone 4 years now but I know exactly what you mean.

SirGawain · 29/07/2020 22:11

This happend to my mum years after my dad died. She got a letter saying that she was entitled to the proceeds of a pension from a firm he worked for for a short while. The firm had just closed down and they were wrapping up the fund. It was all legitimate. She got a few hundred pounds. Not a fortune but it was a useful addition to her savings.

Oly4 · 29/07/2020 22:11

Fill in the forms with a friend’s help if that will help you.
Your mum would want you to have this money

Original poster
pud12342 · 29/07/2020 22:11

If I am honest with myself it hurts me that I lost both my parents close together. They had lived a difficult life financially. We where always skint. I remember them struggling with Christmas and school uniforms and the like but when they died I benighted from a death inservice from one and a life insurance for the other. I have always been aware that they had nothing in life and left a substantial amount that I benefited from. In my adult life I have never experienced hardship like they did and didn’t need the money I got even though it afforded us to move to a bigger house. If this does turn out to be a decent sum it just feels like it adds to the amount they never got to have. If it turns out to be a couple of hundred quid I feel like it has brought it all back for very little.

OP posts:
MrsGrindah · 29/07/2020 22:20

Yes OP same here. I wish my parents realised how much they’d left me. Not a fortune but more money than they’d ever had in one go. They’d have been delighted for me though. So focus on that..you haven’t taken anything from your Mum , she’s given it to you.

Palavah · 29/07/2020 22:27

Oh OP, it sounds as though they would have been so happy that you haven't suffered financially and would want you to have the money. That's why they bought life insurance. It's not designed to compensate for the loss of your parents at such a young age - you haven't sold them - nor will it bring them back, and sending back the forms doesn't need to mean anything more than you claiming what belongs to uou6as their heir.

If it feels better then you could donate some money to charity as a legacy in theit name.

StylishMummy · 29/07/2020 22:33

As a parent - you never want your children to struggle, you want them to have a healthy, happy, comfortable life. This money is another way your mum can do this for you, even after she's gone Thanks

Gogogadgetarms · 29/07/2020 22:41

@AbbieFB

There may have been a lump sum death benefit?

I wonder why there were 3?

I’m sorry it’s bought back your grief but your Mum would want you to have it.

Sometimes when financial advisers sold personal pensions they would do so using a split of funds and set each one up as it’s own policy to get 3x the commission. OP when I recently got probate on an estate the pension part was one of the simplest. If they were taken out in the 80s they will have achieved some growth. They must have value remaining otherwise Aviva wouldn’t have followed it up.
Bargebill19 · 29/07/2020 22:50

Fill in the form and send it off. You could always donate the money to a food bank in your mums memory - if you feel that would be a positive end to the memories. Your mum wouldn’t want you to feeling the way you do- she obviously loved you and wanted to look out for you for as long as she could.

Original poster
pud12342 · 29/07/2020 22:56

That makes perfect sense as to why there was 3. Thank you. That has been baffling me. I couldn’t work out why she would take 3 separate pensions Out in the same year

OP posts:
YesIDoLoveCrisps · 29/07/2020 23:00

I would get the money off them and put it away until you feel ready in your heart to make a choice, don’t rush.
Five years can feel like five minutes so it’s ok to still be sad.