life insurance advice

[staffy]

Hello all. My ex partner passed away this September. We has been a couple for 10years but split up for around 18months even though he had moved back in with me and were still extremely close. It is my belief that he died from cancer that he refused to get treated although I shall not get answers until the toxoligy comes back from his post mortem.

He had no contact with his family in 20years and had named me as next of kin in all things so I was shocked when the police contacted them and they in effect took over and moved him 250miles away so that no one who knew or loved him had a chance to say goodbye and his own wishes that we had talked about were totally disregarded. I have even been shunned by the coroner who refuses to speak to me. I am still very upset and angry about this but will try and keep this straight forward.

He had a life insurance policy with Scottish widdows and named me as the only beneficiary although I can't find any proof of this apart from a financial forecast done by his bank who sold the policy to him that states he wanted it to be held in trust for me his partner (at the time)

I really don't know how any of these things work. Upon contacting Scottish widows they asked who was next of kin which I said was myself as I believed it to be at the time and they asked for a copy of his death cert. I know an interim cert has been issued but his mother refuses to give me a copy and so does the coroner. Having read through some paperwork I also see he did not nominate a trustee.

Can anyone give me some advice on how I should proceed and if you think his family will be able to block my daughter and I receiving this money which is what he wished and why he kept paying until his death?

Thanks in advance.

(we were never married and he never made a will)

[Peridot]

Re: life insurance advice

Hi Staffy,
I'm sorry to hear about your partner. It must be a really tough time for you. This sort of situation brings out the worst in families I'm afraid.
I am not a financial advisor, but my understanding is that the trustees of the policy are the company Scottish Widows, it wouldn't be your partner appointing trustees, he would just give an indication of who he would prefer the beneficiary of the policy to be. Unless your partner contacted them to change his wishes then you are probably still named as his preferred beneficiary. It is at the discretion of the trustees to pay the fund to you but it is not usual for life insurers to go against a person's wishes.

You will need to provide Scottish Widows with a certified copy of the death certificate, a copy of which you can obtain in due course once the coroner has closed the matter here: https://www.gov.uk/order-copy-birth-...ge-certificate

Of course if you are able to communicate with his family that would probably be preferable, although I can appreciate how difficult this would be bearing in mind the situation.

Is your daughter his child too? She may have a claim in any event against his estate if she is a dependant? You would need to obtain some face to face legal advice about this from a contentious probate specialist. You may be able to get a free half hour or reduced fee appointment to discuss your daughter's (and your) options.

I hope things can be sorted for you at this difficult time.

[staffy]

Re: life insurance advice

Thanks ever so much kind words and advice. Do you know if I am right in thinking that you have to wait 6 months from when the death is registered before you can get a certificate? if I am right in that thought how do I proceed from there? Or is it just a case of sitting tight and waiting it out.

[Peridot]

Re: life insurance advice

Hi Staffy,
No need to wait to get a certified copy of the death certificate.
If a claim needs to be made by your daughter for example then that has to be made within 6 months of the Grant of Letters of Administration. Get some advice particularly in respect of any potential claim you or your daughter may be able to make against the estate.
The life policy, although it should be declared in any HMRC papers to obtain the grant, does not form part of the estate for inheritance tax purposes.
The ultimate decision who receives the policy proceeds will be up to the insurers, but it is unusual for them to go against a preference indicated by your partner.
You can order on the gov website I provided above, but I’ve found another site for a registry office which confirms the details you will need. It would be worth checking if the authority registry office where your partner’s death was registered has their own guidance, but I anticipate the requirements will be the same; https://www.westsussex.gov.uk/births...a-certificate/

[staffy]

Re: life insurance advice

Sorry if I am being stupid but I don't think his death has been registered yet as the post mortem results are still not concluded. I had a text message the other day from Scottish widows asking me once again for the death cert. I went down CAB and they gave me totally the wrong information and told me that if a funeral had been held then there would be a certificate available. Anyway I'm not sure if I should just call Scottish widows and inform them that I am no longer N.O.K and his mother is dealing with his estate and I can not get a copy of his certificate yet. Should I know what the grant of letters of administration is? Like I said I went down the CAB but am thinking of taking up a solicitor. Is there any advice you can give me with choosing one as there seems so many to choose from and I have very little experience with them. Thanks x

[Peridot]

Re: life insurance advice

You’re not being stupid at all. The coroner will have issued a temporary certificate to allow the funeral to take place but an official death certificate won’t be prepared until the post-mortem results confirm the cause of death. Once that has happened you can get a copy official death certificate.

There is no harm the insurer know who is dealing with the estate and to also confirm she has the temporary death certificate. If you have her contact details you could let the insurer know and hey can deal directly with her. Do the insurers know he had a daughter, if that’s the case? Let them know if they don’t.
In order to deal with his estate it may be necessary to obtain a grant. Because there is no Will an Administrator is appointed instead of an executor (the person named in a Will,if there is one) The Administrator or executor basically have the same roles. They are the people who deal with the estate administration and distribution.

Until the death is formally registered no-one can do anything really with the estate, although they can gather the necessary infrmation to deal with some of the formalities. As there is no will, no one should do anything with the estate as their power to deal with the estate comes from the Grant of Letters of Administration (called a Grant of Probate when there is a Will).

You can find out more information here and when a Grant is needed here: https://www.gov.uk/wills-probate-inheritance

If there is a way of communicating with his parents it may help you all to deal with what has happened. They may want to keep in touch with your daughter? I know this is probably a really hard, emotional time for everyone concerned, but things may hopefully improve.

[carlos1867]

Re: life insurance advice

Think the key to this is where you mention he wanted the policy to be placed in Trust for you. Do you know if the policy was placed in Trust?
IF a Trust was formed (usually likely to be discretionary gift Trust), the policy would pay to the trustees, who would then distribute in accordance with the wishes of the policy holder.
If the policy wasn't placed in a trust, then the insurer may follow laws of intestacy when making a pay out.

[Peridot]

Re: life insurance advice

No, sorry I may have confused you. Easily done with legal terminology.
The trustees of the policy are trustees of the company who hold the policy, not trustees under a will.
It would be highly unlikely a company’s trustees would go against the deceased persons wishes.
Provided your partner hadn’t changed his preference, his wishes would usually stand.
Let them know the situation, it may be they will make no payment t until they see the full death certificate, but a decision will be made quickly. They like to deal as quickly as possible which may be why they are hassling a bit for you to provide the death certificate.
The nomination on a life policy trumps the intestacy rules.