Executor Query

[Queenanne20]

MIL sadly passed away recently. Dh and his sister are the beneficiaries of her Will, being left 50% each. SIL and Solicitor are the two Executors as Dh has health problems and it was agreed when MIL wrote her Will that Dh would be unable to act as Executor. We have just found out that Dhs share of the inheritance is a lot less than we estimated it to be. SIL has said she is sending him half the proceeds from the house sale after fees etc and half the money that was in the bank account, again, after settling all outstanding bills etc. This amount is a fair few thousand less than we expected it to be but SIL insists it's all that is left over. Apparently, she sacked the Solicitor and has acted as sole Executor and is refusing to give Dh a breakdown of how she has arrived at this figure. Did she have the right to stop the Solicitor acting as Executor and can she refuse to give Dh details of where all the money has gone?

yup this, but its usual for a solicitor who agrees to step down to ask for a fee for doing so.

Thank you so much once again, to all of you for taking the time and trouble to reply. There is some fantastic information on here, phrases I'd never even heard of (sounds daft I know) such as "Estate Accounts". I'm going to send a formal letter, tracked delivery, to SIL, requesting a copy of the Estate Accounts and give her 28 days to reply. It's such a shame it's come to this as I know it will be the end of any relationship with her and her dh. I just know she will be furious but if everything is above board then she should have nothing to worry about. Due to his illness dh can't work and does claim a means tested benefit, which will obviously stop as soon as the money arrives. I might use this fact as an excuse as to why we need a copy of the estate accounts, saying I have to have all paperwork in order for the DWP in case they want to see how much he's inherited etc. This might frighten her into complying and save me having to threaten court action (I'm a coward I know, but I have an extremely stressful life and the thoughts of arranging court action terrifies me). Also, I think when she asked the Solicitor to step down as Executor, she probably will have had to pay a fee but I can't imagine it was enough to justify the 40k defecit. I will be very interested to see the estate accounts, when and if she sends them and I will update on here. If we don't receive them after the given time frame, then I will be following all your advice as to the next step of legal action but I really hope it doesn't come to that. Thanks again to everyone.

I think it's a good idea to say that information is required by the DWP.

Also, bear in mind that she cannot claim for her time, only her actual expenses related to her position as executor and she should provide proof of those expenses.

I don’t think you should dilute it with dwp
stuff - you could request that separately

a straight forward letter giving her 28 days or you will ask court to intervene and tell her the consequences - a simple message will have much more impact and show you mean business - you can use AI to write it

The only thing I may add was to remind her she cannot claim for her time

solicitors don’t charge for stepping down - but there is a process to it which they may charge a nominal amount if they have to compete forms etc

am writing to formally request a full copy of the estate accounts for the late [Full Name of Deceased], who passed away on [Date of Death]. I understand that you are acting as the executor of the estate.
As an interested party, I have a right to receive a clear and accurate account of the administration of the estate. I respectfully request that you provide the full estate accounts within 28 days of the date of this letter.
If the accounts are not received within this timeframe, I will consider making an application to the Court for an order requiring the disclosure of the accounts, and for appropriate directions regarding the administration of the estate.
I trust this matter can be resolved amicably and without the need for court intervention.
Yours sincerely,
[Your Name]

More casual

Dear [Executor’s First Name],
I hope you're keeping well. I'm writing to ask if you could please provide me with a copy of the estate accounts for [Full Name of Deceased], who sadly passed away on [Date of Death].
As someone with an interest in the estate, I'd like to understand how things have been handled. I’d appreciate it if you could send me the accounts within 28 days of this letter.
If I don’t hear back by then, I may need to apply to the court to request them officially and to get some help moving things forward.
I’m hoping we can sort this out without needing to go down that route. Please do get in touch if you have any questions or need anything from me.
Best regards,

OP. If you follow either of @Marmaladelade‘s brilliant suggestions I’d write the letter in your husband’s name, not yours. He is entitled to tge accounts as a beneficiary, not you and you don’t want to be caught up on a technicality.

FWIW, as an executor of a considerably larger estate (c £2.2m with 30+ beneficiaries and three estate distributions), my expenses are under £200.

we have used a solicitor as the estate has multiple trusts, tenanted property, investments etc and their fees are approx £25k for 15 months of work including all tax issues and property sale

if your SIL is claiming £40k in personal expense then she is corrupt.

Thank you all so much for this extra information. Particularly, the two samples of the letters I could send to SIL in dhs name. I'm going to go with the more informal letter to start with and will update on here when and if we get a reply. Thanks also for the reminder about me doing everything in dhs name as he is the beneficiary and not me. Thank you again to everyone who has taken the time and effort to help me.

Yes you need to change the tenses etc as you are probably more familiar with them but it’s a good outline - I mean like around who has died etc

well done you

yes let us know

I’m glad your going with a more formal
letter. -it may scare them youve had legal advice

You should certainly ask the solicitor that is an executor what is happening as they should be concerned as they may be liable ! In any case you may like to take all this to a solicitor for a free consultation. If you are not talking to your relative you may find you are free to make a fairly robust demand.

The whole executor set up is horrendous.

When my dad died he left his brother as executor of his will. They wernt that close. But my dad didnt have a lot of close relatives. I was the beneficiary of the will. My uncle was a terrible executor. My uncle seemed to resent that i had been left the money. So i didnt get to enjoy the first money that i had ever had at all. It took three years to sort out the estate. My uncle was cruel to me and i feel like he enjoyed abusing me throughout the three years.

By the end of the three years i finally got some money but i was a shell of a person. I had a mental breakdown after it all. Its just a horrendous system.

I think only solicitors should be executors , not family members. As at least solicitors will be neutral, and they are less likely to take money they are not entitled to.

The solicitor renounced their role so will not have been involved in applying for probate. How would they be liable for the actions of the other executor?
OP has received sensible advice on this thread re her dh as the residual beneficiary requesting the estate accounts. This is the next step to take.

Strongly disagree with this.

I'm sorry you went through the ordeal you describe. However, most executors do a decent job. I don't think we should saddle all estates with the cost of employing a solicitor to do the job just because a small minority of executors abuse their position.

I agree.

i do however think the executor system needs some sort of overhaul as it is very easy to abuse.

having been victim of executor fraud it’s also almost impossible to prove as only the executor that has access to the information. I took my suspicions to the bank who would not investigate because I was not executor- even though they’d frozen the accounts themselves due to the executors activity. The ombudsman couldn’t help either because only the executor can raise a complaint.

if an executor isn’t acting correctly there’s not much you can do if you don’t have the ££££££ for civil court.

Not sure how it would work mind. Maybe stop allowing single executors? Or give residuary beneficiaries some powers to access bank records?

I would have preferred to pay the solicitor. My uncle, as executor, ruined my life for three years. He was cruel and nasty. He seemed to resent that i was left the money. He was jealous. He told me that i should give money to my dads girlfriend. Even though my dads girlfriend wasnt named in the will. He ruined my mental health. He didnt act in my best interests as executor at all. He was jealous that i was receiving thw money.

It was my first time inheriting money. I thought i had to have the appointed executor.

It was only much later on thst i learned that i could have applied to have the executor removed. I wish i had done that. The executor made my life a misery. He didnt help me in any way. He made the whole process awful

I would have much preferred, to sort out the estate myself with a solicitor

I am no expert, but from what I have found out and also from the legal advice I have had, it is not easy to remove an executor.

you have to prove they are not acting correctly. So you need to drag them into mediation, then civil court to get the accounts/ask them why they are delaying. Usually unless they have committed fraud or some other serious issue which gets them immediately removed they will be instructed to produce accounts/pay up or whatever, with consequences if they don’t.

So don’t spend any mental energy on that what if.

Im a firm believer that the executor process should be got rid off.

Why give someone, who has no legal experience at all, access to bank accounts? Of course its going to go wrong, and thats why theres so much executor fraud.

And why you hear about so many families falling out over wills.

Really? What are the figures on executor fraud?
lasting power of attorney also gives access to bank accounts. Should we abandon that process too?
i think people falling out over wills is more likely due to who the beneficiaries are and amounts received, rather than executor fraud?

Let me ask you one question before we continue this discussion.

Have you ever inherited money, where someone else was the executor of the will?

Yes.
I have also been the sole executrix of an estate.

I genuinely think that it is one of the worst expeiences that ive ever been through.

My mental health hasnt recovered.

When someone is cruel, it hurts.

However When someone is cruel, right at the time when you are grieving, it hurts more.

And when this cruelty goes on for years, as it usually takes years to sort out an estate.

It causes even more emotional damage.

I have not revovered from what my uncle put me through when he was executor.

It sounds like you have had a very unpleasant experience. However, I don’t think it means the entire system is unworkable or that there is a huge amount of executor fraud.

Would you care to elaborate (if your experience isn't too outing)?

I made the transition from PoA to Executor in February, and am anticipating trouble from one member in particular of my BIL's extended family who feels "family" trumps the directions contained in the Will, and is clearly limbering up for a fight (which she won't win) to gain a larger share of the estate than that allocated to her husband.