Beneficiary requesting copy of Will and Estate Accounts

[makesmestronger]

Husband and I are executors of his Fathers will (so my father in law), and sadly he passed so our duties switched from POA to executors.

There is no property, or probate it literally a few £K's to be split between 6 beneficiaries (husbands siblings). The funeral was fraught with regards to arrangements and all the siblings have accepted what is due to them except one.

One of them has asked for a copy of the will and the estate accounts. We have provided a copy of the will and an excel sheet breakdown of estate debts (which is rent, funeral costs) and a credit (refund on a utility) which gives a total of £15500 (not true figures).

I've also supplied a letter from father in laws bank which states £16K was in the account when his accounts were closed. On the excel sheet you can see a deduction of £500 for rent (again figures are not true).

So my question is we do have bank details for the sibling do we just pay the money or do we hold on to it until they are happy with accounts?

If they request more information what else can I provide (bank statements are tricky as personal 3rd party information on there so GDPR breach)
Or do I tell them to apply to the UK courts?

I just wish for hubby to grieve and these family politics to end - many thanks

I’d send them the last bank statement for your FIL. Then pay their share into their bank account.

Individuals don't have to abide by gdpr

Exactly this. GDPR does not apply at all here, and the account is now frozen, so the relative could not use the account information for nefarious reasons!!!!
but if you are still worried, black out the account number.

Also to add, I’ve been an executor, and personally I would not pay anything to a beneficiary until they had agreed the amounts.

GDPR only applies to living individuals so you can share the bank account details.

Do you have reason to think they will ask for more? How long is it since you've given what they have and have they said anything else in the interim?

(For the avoidance of doubt I mean more info, and info given, not money!)

there is a payment on there to an individual that is still living would that not still count on GDPR?

I don't think they will ask for more (they can ask there is no more money in the pot it all been divided equally) we've done nothing wrong (we've not even taken expenses that we could have done) we haven't paid anything to them this is full and final payment. FIL passed in Nov'23 so we've processed the will as quickly as we could as soon as we received the information we needed from DWP etc

Might that be a bone of contention?

If there’s more than 5k in assets you need probate.

if there’s not that much money technically you can do what the fuck you want as it is not going to be worth taking you to civil court for the documents*.

*bitter experience. The way probate and executorship is set up in this country means it’s incredibly easy for an executor to defraud the estate. Even more so if they had POA or access to accounts prior to death.

Just blank out all payments and receipts beyond balance as at death and payments /receipts made after (to show legit)

They have no reason to see anything beyond balance at death. So maybe just blank all payments and receigpts for ease.

More constructively, you can find and download templates for estate accounts which should give an idea of what should and shouldn’t be in there.

Not necessarily, it depends on the financial institution’s rules.

And may FI’s allow enormous amounts to withdrawn without probate. Some high street banks it can be 50k. It’s completely possible to have several hundred thousand spread across several banks and other accounts and not “need” probate. No probate, the will remains private, the executer is not obliged to show it to anyone, so even proving you’re beneficiary is impossible. If you can’t show you’re a beneficiary, you have no right to the documents.

like I said, the system is so open to abuse it’s ridiculous. Speaking as a (probable, as we can’t see the will without probate) beneficiary who can do fuck all as banks allowed executor to close all accounts with no probate. To take the executor to court any recover our share would take £££ in legal fees we just don’t have.

No because you, as an individual using the data for personal/household purposes, are not subject to GDPR.

Forget GDPR but just blank out the individual's details, if you are worried about the person's privacy.

Beneficiaries are not automatically entitled to see the estate accounts and it's the executors not the beneficiaries who have to agree them.

I will be making more than 20 payments from an estate to residuary beneficiaries in the next week or so. We will not be supplying estate accounts. To put it bluntly, they'll get what they're given.

@makesmestronger there is a payment on there to an individual that is still living would that not still count on GDPR? do you mean money was given to a beneficiary as a standing order?? I can see that that would be a problem to the remaining beneficiaries!

I think residuary beneficiaries are entitled to see accounts.

but they’ll need to take you to court for it if you don’t show them voluntarily.

Yes you're right actually (although we don't supply them to beneficiaries as a matter of course).

I suppose if someone is left x asset -£5000 or a painting then they get that and no need to see any beck up behind the will.

But if left 20% or half the remainder you'd want to see how that was calculated?