FIL and making a will. Can anyone advise ??

[ItsAllABitStrangeReally]

Hello all.

My FIL has mental health problems, he can be difficult and prefers a head in sand approach to life. Which is fine.

He also has considerable assets.

Fully owns his own home, has around 300k in savings, stocks and shares and also has a good, works pension (( which he refuses to claim ))

In all honesty him not having a will isnt my business, he can leave his money to the local cats home for all.I care however lets face it, there's a 100% chance that at some point, he will die.

His ex wife on the other hand has been bragging to all and sundry that when he dies all assets and money will go to her (( she's named on his pension )) my heart breaks at the thought of this. She treated him appaling during their marraige, and he is an extremely vulnerable man.

I don't believe she'd be able to make a claim on his house as she removed her name from the deeds in order to claim housing benefit, she's also remarried a few years ago now. (( fil hasnt ))

Is it really true she'd be able.to make a claim on his assets ?? As said above, id rather the lot went to charity then that woman getting her witchy claws on it when he's not here anymore.

Thanks in advance.

if he doesn't make a will his assets will pass to his children/brothers/sisters/cousins etc, she can make an attempt at a claim against his estate, however it's not likely to be successful if their finances were put in order at the time of their divorce. Similarly it is unlikely he has nominated her by name for his pension, but more that it is a spousal pension, which would not be paid to an ex wife.

If the house and savings are in his sole name and she has remarried, then, no, she will have no claim, and the intestacy rules will pass those assets to his children.

The pension is harder to say without knowing about the scheme rules, but generally, they are discretionary, and the trustees may well decline to follow a nomination of a wife that predates a divorce and remarriage.

I would leave well alone. He doesn't have to make a will if he doesn't want to.

Actually I disagree not having a isnt an issue MrsBertBibby, my mum didnt leave a will either and it was an absolute nightmare to sort out. More so not knowing her wishes, fortunately a family member had money to pay for the funeral upfront or we'd have been stuck !!

He doesnt actually claim his pension as he refuses and chooses to live a very frugal existence instead. I find the fact his ex wife has been bragging about how.wealthy she'll be when he dies (( he's mid sixties and as.fit as a fiddle from.what I can see )) im not sure what his financial matters are really though I did suggest to his dd about her maybe seeking power of attorney due to his vulnerability and risk of being exploited.

Of course it would be better if he made a Will, but you can't make him if he doesn't want to. Nor can his daughter get a power of attorney unless he wants to give her one.

He is allowed to make decisions you don't agree with, even if they are objectively poor decisions.

Of course it can be a nightmare if somebody dies without a will. But I don't think it's up to the family to put pressure on people if they don't want to make one. It's not a legal requirement as long as they know the consequences. I doubt his ex-wife (if their divorce is totally finalised) would inherit anything if there was no will. She certainly wouldn't be entitled to a spouse's pension if they were divorced. He may have deferred his pension rather than not claim it at all.

I know, I know.

I've calmed down now, I was just so disgusted at hearing some of the things she came out with. It's good to know she'll get bog all.

As I said, he could leave it to the cats home.for all we care, we'll always look out for him. And much as id like him to sort something out wouldnt dream of nagging him. I think im.just overworrying as we lost my mum.very suddenly and had to deal with the upset of that and the financial side as well.

Is fil your father in law .? If so what does your husband/wife think of the situation regarding their own parent.? Let them deal with it

Perhaps getting hold of his important documents eg decree nisi and getting him to put them in the hands of a solicitor for safe keeping might be something he would agree to. It would certainly be easier if everything legal was available on his death rather than trying to find things by searching the house.
In fact you could do to speak to a solicitor for some advice in what to do. He might outlive his ex anyway.

The Citizens Advice Bureau has details on its website of how an estate is distributed when a person dies intestate. A divorced former spouse gets nothing. There are rules about the value of the estate though.

Is it possible for his close family to talk to him about leaving everything in a simple way to help his relatives when he dies? Lots of people do want to have their affairs sorted out before death to help their next of kin and not make things more difficult for them. Shame about the pension situation. This man seems a bit confused and perhaps needs help to claim what is his for the sake of his family if not for him.

Bimbobaggins........me and sil act as carers and she is equally worried. This is an extremely, vulnerable man. Of course we want to keep him safe, i've known him.since I was 5 !!! The fact his ex wife has been crowing that when he's dead it will all come to me anyway is disgusting.

Thank you bubbles and pixie, we do try but he cant really cope with the pressure.......he isnt really getting any support from MH services either (( well he does when he reaches crisis point and ends up under section )) day to day it's SIL and I who keep an eye out and make sure he has human contact each day. My DP visits when he isnt working but isnt as involved as his sister and I since we're home.during the day.

Could anything be done about his financial matters ie his pension he won't claim ?? As it stands he isnt claiming all he should and his house is falling into disrepair, we cover clothes on birthday and Christmas but only so much we can do really. I don't think he's getting all the benefits he's entitled to either since he recently mentioned he's paying for his prescriptuons.