inheritance claims time limit

[Oasis01]

Hi,
I have grant of administration with will attached for my mothers estate part of her will states that a share of the estate goes to her "grandchildren" a while ago I received notification from the mother of an alleged grandchild (aged 31 years) that she is a grandchild and is entitled to a share of the estate. The "child" is I believe the daughter of one of my brothers however they are no longer in contact. I am advised that my brothers name is not on her birth certificate so I advised a, the child would need to make the claim herself as the mother has no entitlement and b, that DNA testing may be required in order to prove that she is a grandchild. The mother has since written back stating that the daughter no longer wishes to make a claim. My question is is there a time limit for the grandchild to make a claim or can I go ahead and distribute to the proven grandchildren?

[Peridot]

Hi Oasis01,

The time limit for bringing a claim against the estate is 6months from the date the Grant was issued, however, if you are aware of this other 'grandchild' then technically they are entitled to a share of the estate depending on the exact wording of the Will. You pointed out they would have to prove they were her grandchild, irrelevant of what relationship there was with her parent (your sibling). If they are a grandchild then technically, if the wording of the Will includes any grandchild then they are entitled.

I don't think just waiting for the time limit to pass is sufficient to protect yourself here. Unfortunately you are now aware of the potential additional grandchild and I would suggest you should act on the information. Can you contact the grandchild yourself? Does your sibling admit this person may be his child?

Depending on the sum involved maybe you could hold that amount back and give the other grandchildren a reduced figure initially, until further investigations have been made.

It may be an idea to look into obtaining some indemnity insurance and what the cost of a policy would be, to protect yourself should the person try and bring a claim against you personally at a later point, as you were aware (or ought to have been aware) of their existence and did not investigate further. This is of course a matter for you and would depend on the sort of sums we are talking about both in whether you risk distributing the amounts, hold some back or consider insurance.

It may be worth you obtaining a free or reduced fee appointment with a lawyer specialising in probate to confirm the options open to you then you can decide on what course of action to take.

[des8]

If the possible beneficiary does not intend to make a claim, you could ask her to make that known in writing to you.
That would be a sufficient disclaimer to allow you to distribute the assets

[Peridot]

Hi again,
A beneficiary can of course refuse a legacy and the executors/administrators would not then be liable for an incorrect distribution. The refusal should be in writing as Des8 says.
I suppose your issue here is the fact that you are now aware of a potential beneficiary although are not certain if this person is in fact a blood relative. If they are willing to confirm in writing that they do not want any legacy then that would be sufficient, whether or not they are a grandchild. If they are willing to do that then it is irrelevant whether they are blood relative or not so no further investigation would be needed.
If they aren't then I suspect it may be necessary to go down the DNA route to prove one way or the other.

[2222]

On the insurance point, I looked at issue risk insurance recently, and it was very expensive in relation to the risk. I only found one firm offering it.

In the circumstances described, I think insurance would either not be available, or the premium would be so close to 100% of the potential payout as not to be worth the trouble.

Out of interest, what should the OP do if the alleged grandchild refuses to disclaim or cooperate in investigations? If a share of the estate is set aside, does there come a point (six years after grant, maybe?) where that can be safely distributed?

[des8]

On the insurance point, I looked at issue risk insurance recently, and it was very expensive in relation to the risk. I only found one firm offering it.

In the circumstances described, I think insurance would either not be available, or the premium would be so close to 100% of the potential payout as not to be worth the trouble.

Out of interest, what should the OP do if the alleged grandchild refuses to disclaim or cooperate in investigations? If a share of the estate is set aside, does there come a point (six years after grant, maybe?) where that can be safely distributed?

Odd as lots of firms offer Executors/administrators liability cover with premiums starting around £300 for a £1000000 cover.
The premium of course is an allowable expense against the estate.

[2222]

Odd as lots of firms offer Executors/administrators liability cover with premiums starting around £300 for a £1000000 cover.
The premium of course is an allowable expense against the estate.

That covers an inadvertent error. There's clearly a difference between that and deciding not to pay a beneficiary you have notice of.

[des8]

That covers an inadvertent error. There's clearly a difference between that and deciding not to pay a beneficiary you have notice of.

I don't think a decision has been made not to pay any beneficiary.

In this case, if the matter is not resolved, the administrator is having regard to a POSSIBLE beneficiary who is declining to register a claim.
Potential insurers will require full details and then make a decision (if they offer cover) whether or not to exclude claims arising from this person when they set the premium

[Oasis01]

I think the issue I have is that the individual concerned has not actually made any claim the person is we believe 31 years old and all I have received was a letter from her mother. When I advised that a, the person would need to make the claim as the mother has no entitlement to claim and b, that as my sibling is not named on the persons birth certificate that we would require DNA evidence that the person is indeed bloodline related. The persons father has had little of no contact with the person since birth and although he is prepared to have the dna test neither of them are willing to pay for such. we have since received a letter from the mother stating that she has decided not to claim however the issue is that the person who is possibly entitled may claim later. I am unsure if I should retain her share if applicable and if so for how long.

[2222]

Does a beneficiary have to claim at all, though? As Peridot said, there's a difference between a beneficiary you don't know about and one you know about but are not sure about the authenticity. Hopefully the person in question will clarify their position.

[des8]

Beneficiaries do not have to claim It is for the executor to make diligent search, and to then distribute the estate to the beneficiaries. Part of that search might well be to post notices requesting those who might be due a legacy from the estate to come forward. In this case the administrator has a problem in that he/she is aware there might be an undisclosed beneficiary. This is a problem that needs to be resolved either by ruling them out or in. It could be resolved if the possible beneficiary gives a written undertaking not to make a claim, i.e. to disclaim any legacy that might be due.

[Oasis01]

The difficulty I am having is that without dna testing we have no way of knowing if the beneficiary is a grandchild or not and therefore a beneficiary or not I am currently considering setting aside the amount for them in case of a future claim as I have no way of contacting them. the original letter from the mother was to my solicitor who has since gone into administration. I have not heard from the possible claimant at all only from the mother. I have been told that as since 6 months has passed since probate was granted and notifications were published in the gazette etc that any future claimants would have to apply to a court to have the claim considered. does anyone know if this is the case because if so I would also need to set aside a sum for legal and court fees. My understanding is that I would if need be be able to make a fairly straight forward out of court settlement if required on evidence of bloodline.

[Peridot]

Hi Oasis01,
If you are willing to put the sum to one side should she decide she wants this I would be inclined to do so, provided proof via DNA is provided of course. Your issue is the wording of the will - any grandchild which she potentially is and you are aware of her potential existence now. There would be no need for her to bring a claim against the estate if you have held the sum so no issue that way.
Did the solicitors send you a copy of the mother’s letter? If so I’d write to her asking her to forward it to the daughter. If she can demonstrate she is genetically a grandchild she can have the inheritance if not then the sum is distributed equally between the remaining grandchildren or the residue depending how the Will is worded.
If she does not wish to have dna test then she should sign a disclaimer stating she doesn’t wish to receive any inheritance or prove via dna.
Hope that helps.