Will advice

[Danni1967]

I really don’t think I can do anything about this but hoping for some advice on whether I should pursue

a relative who knew they were dieing transferred a large sum of money over to a “trusted” relative A week before they passed away. The intention was made clear this money was to be shared out between a number of people so the people would not have to wait for probate to be granted to receive the money.

the “trusted” relative has now kept all that money to themselves.

I completely understand things should have been done differently but it is what it is and this is the situation we are in now

the amount of the total estate is below the inheritance tax threshold so that doesn’t come into it.

there is no question of mental capacity to make this decision the person had capacity to make this decision believing the trusted relative would do the right thing.

my question is is there any legal recourse that could make the person have to share this money out and is it worth pursuing or do we just have to accept the fact this money is now written off?

Why do people do such stupid things? Why not just give the money directly to the people you want it to go to? I suspect you are stuck with it unless you can call a meeting with the others who don’t have any of the money either. Then decide if you can meet the person with the money. Was there anything in writing about this to anyone? How many people thought they would get something? Is it just you or a few of you? If it’s just a conversation it will be virtually impossible to prove but if there’s a will that would at least show intentions when the will was made and add to your bargaining position.

Others might have more knowledge based on their expertise or experiences.

Thank you it involves a few people and the person who has the money has been spoken to no avail. There is nothing in writing specifically about this money that has been moved however the will dictates all money to be shared between the people but I assume that only includes what was actually in the bank at time of death and does not include the the money moved just before death. very frustrating more for the fact that the person who has died their wishes are not being followed through

That was a bad move on the part of the person who died. How large was the amount?
I think it will need to be written off. Sadly it will probably also affect family (if it is family) relationships for ever after too. Money brings out the worst in people doesn't it.

@Danni1967 Did the person give the money freely to one person? Was it a hatched plan? I might just ask a will specialist.

really was a bad move the person who has died genuinely believed the person would have done the right thing on their death, as did I ! We are talking around 75k so a large amount of money. It is family and unfortunately makes a very small family now even smaller. Money certainly does bring out the worse in people!
i am deciding whether to pay to get some advice as to whether we can try and reclaim some of the money but don’t want to pay out if it’s not worth it!

In theory, they should have to pay inheritance tax on that anount as the giver has died within 7 years of gifting it.

Cant advise on what to do, but that could be an option...

I don't think anything legally can be done about the gift, assuming sound mind

Though for iht you need to add the value of the gift onto the rest -but that seems to be the only asset

This family member will lose the family relationship with all they should have passed money too of course but they may not care.

Only thing to check is it you have proof that mum gave money with instructions to pass it on -If so they should still do that but if you are just assuming that's her intention-I'd ask them for proof it was a gift and not a loan which may scare them into returning it?

In theory you could sue them for not repaying the estate "a loan" but I assume the estate has no money to pay legal costs so you'd have to pay yourself abs lose more money)

So work out if you have evidence if the payment to them was in any way a loan or held on trust to pay to others (rather than a gift) and then discuss with a solicitor if there is anything. But go prepared with evidence to maximise value of the meeting.

No, the estate pays IHT on gifts unless the deceased gives away more than £325k in the 7 years before their death. If the total value of the estate including any gifts is less than £325k, there is no IHT to pay.

Whether anything can be done in this situation depends on the evidence. If it can be proved on the balance of probabilities that the trusted relative was not given the money as a gift but was given it to distribute to others, it may be possible to take action against them to recover the money.