Tweet
Hi all
My sister had dementia, I was her Deputy and looked after her for her last 3 years, placing her in care homes, ending her tenancy, clearing her house, etc. she owed a great deal of money (£180,000 +) but had modest savings which were being eroded by care home fees, she was on a number of repayment plans paying numerous creditors £1 pcm each. When I was appointed deputy I contacted her main creditors to let them know the situation and stop correspondence going to the house she had given up, I also paid utility bills, care home fees, etc. from her bank account.
She died recently, I, as next of kin, registered her death, I am aware that my rights and obligations as Deputy ended with her death and my main concern was to arrange her funeral, which we have done very successfully, a small, modest but beautiful service.
Her bank will meet the cost of the funeral from her account and the balance will be less than their probate threshold.
I have dealt with several estates in the family, but all were simple and solvent with no friction of any kind, having looked at various sources, insolvent estates appear to be a can of worms, although I am not liable for my sister's debts, if I administer the estate, but make errors that disadvantage a creditor, I could be liable for any loss caused by the error.
I am in the process of informing the creditors of her death and the debt collectors have informed me that they were passing the case back to their clients, if I continue to provide information to interested parties, including posting an ad (at my own expense) in the Gazette and local paper, does that count as, "intermeddling" and imply that I am administering the estate, or would I have to take a more significant action, other than simply providing information?
some creditors have written off debts, others have yet to reply.
I am not trying to "get away" with anything, but I do not want to spend hours sharing out £10,000 pro-rata between 20 corporate creditors, knowing that, if I get it wrong, I could be making myself liable and having problems.
On the other hand, if the creditors take the line that pursuing the debts is not cost-effective, and write them off, then the £10,000 would be a useful inheritance.
As I understand it, if one of the creditors was inclined to apply for probate, they would be in the same position as I would, i.e. they would be obliged to pay, not just themselves, but all the creditors, pro rata, and would have the costs of applying for probate and dealing with 20 or so creditors and might end up spending thousands to gain a few hundred, or even less.
All input very welcome
My sister had dementia, I was her Deputy and looked after her for her last 3 years, placing her in care homes, ending her tenancy, clearing her house, etc. she owed a great deal of money (£180,000 +) but had modest savings which were being eroded by care home fees, she was on a number of repayment plans paying numerous creditors £1 pcm each. When I was appointed deputy I contacted her main creditors to let them know the situation and stop correspondence going to the house she had given up, I also paid utility bills, care home fees, etc. from her bank account.
She died recently, I, as next of kin, registered her death, I am aware that my rights and obligations as Deputy ended with her death and my main concern was to arrange her funeral, which we have done very successfully, a small, modest but beautiful service.
Her bank will meet the cost of the funeral from her account and the balance will be less than their probate threshold.
I have dealt with several estates in the family, but all were simple and solvent with no friction of any kind, having looked at various sources, insolvent estates appear to be a can of worms, although I am not liable for my sister's debts, if I administer the estate, but make errors that disadvantage a creditor, I could be liable for any loss caused by the error.
I am in the process of informing the creditors of her death and the debt collectors have informed me that they were passing the case back to their clients, if I continue to provide information to interested parties, including posting an ad (at my own expense) in the Gazette and local paper, does that count as, "intermeddling" and imply that I am administering the estate, or would I have to take a more significant action, other than simply providing information?
some creditors have written off debts, others have yet to reply.
I am not trying to "get away" with anything, but I do not want to spend hours sharing out £10,000 pro-rata between 20 corporate creditors, knowing that, if I get it wrong, I could be making myself liable and having problems.
On the other hand, if the creditors take the line that pursuing the debts is not cost-effective, and write them off, then the £10,000 would be a useful inheritance.
As I understand it, if one of the creditors was inclined to apply for probate, they would be in the same position as I would, i.e. they would be obliged to pay, not just themselves, but all the creditors, pro rata, and would have the costs of applying for probate and dealing with 20 or so creditors and might end up spending thousands to gain a few hundred, or even less.
All input very welcome
Comment