Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

[Hopeful123]

Hello all, I'm new to this and wonder if you can help. My grandmother passed away earlier this year and I’ve only just found out from a third party that I am beneficiary in the will (dated 4 years ago), sharing an interest in the value of the estate. The executor did not inform me that I was in the will – wasn’t he legally obliged to do this at the time of death? However, the main reason for my query is that the executor also had power of attorney 2-3 years prior to my grandmother’s death and had control of any bank accounts.

I have recently found out that the value of those bank accounts has reduced considerably in the past 2 years. When I asked the executor about this I was informed that my grandmother had told him to spend the money. There is no written record of this and I do not know what has been purchased. I was informed that there was no money in the estate at time of death, although I have been offered a sum well short of the inheritance I would have expected based on the value of the accounts 2 years ago. The executor maintains that he did not know that I was a beneficiary and that he has not done anything wrong.

As far as I am aware, the estate has been finalised, but I have not received any inheritance. I would like to know what my options are in terms of challenging the value of the estate, identifying what has been purchased in the past couple of years and whether it is worth me doing this. Could the executor be requested to pay back what he has spent? It is one word against another and my grandmother is no longer here to clarify her wishes. Any help appreciated. Thankyou.

[Johnboy007]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

Hi,
The contents of the will are still valid.
The executor has a legal responsibility to see that the wishes of the deceased are carried out according to the will.
You state that the executor was told by your grandmother to spend the money, at least that is his story.
It is doubtful that your grandmother would have made you a beneficiary, and then told the would be executor to spend the money.
The executor should have informed you of your legacy, as soon as he was aware of the existence and content of any will.
You also state that you have been offered a sum, well short of the inheritance.
If there was no money at the time of death, what were you offered, and what was the value of the inheritance based on?
Money from two years ago, is hardly grounds for valuation of an estate this year.
You can go down the road of probate litigation, but be warned, the costs could far outweigh any gain.
You also stated, I’ve only just found out from a third party that I am beneficiary in the will (dated 4 years ago), sharing an interest in the value of the estate.
Do you know when the will was discovered or made known to the executor?

[Hopeful123]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

Thanks Johnboy. In terms of your questions, I was aware that there was a will, but I was not aware of the contents, I assumed that the beneficiaries were immediate family only so didn't think to ask. It's only now that I found out by chance that I am a beneficiary that I have started questioning this matter. I have been told by the executor that he was not aware that I was a beneificiary until he collected the will at the time of death. When I questioned why I was not told of the contents at this time, he stated that he thought that he had told me.

In terms of the values involved, the values in question only relate to the bank accounts, as the house is a separate matter and not contested. I have been informed by the third party that the value of the accounts has decreased by approx £80k in the last 2 years, so it's more of a matter of what has happened to this money as it would have been part of the estate. This goes back to the statement that the executor was told by my grandmother to spend the money.

I hope this makes sense. Any further help appreciated.

[MissFM]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

Hi Hopeful,

Have you actually seen the will? if not, in your shoes I would make that a priority. It should now be a matter of public record:
https://www.gov.uk/wills-probate-inh...robate-records
If the will has been proved and distributed, as beneficiary I believe you are also entitled to see the executors closing accounts.
Again, in your shoes, I would pursue this line because it does look, from what you've said above, as if there is something rather odd here.:tinysmile_hmm_t2:

However, please do be wary of hearsay from third parties.

[Hopeful123]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

Thanks MissFM, yes I have seen the will as it was sent to me by the third party, who is a trusted individual, but I do take your point about hearsay. There was no mention of values in the will, only that the estate, excluding the house, was to be shared equally between the grandchildren.

The executor has also confirmed to me that there was a difference of about 80k in the accounts in the past 2 years but I have no evidence of what what purchased. The executor has told me that there was no money in the estate at time of death, so I do not know what was actioned during his time as power of attorney whilst my grandmother was still alive. Am I entitled to request details of purchases since he had power of attorney in the past 2 years and/or purchases since time of death?

[Johnboy007]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

So he thought he told you?
What a load of crap......................
He should have made sure you knew, that was his legal responsibility.
80K is one hell of a lot of money to spend in two years........
I would demand to know what he spent my inheritance on.
Seems to me that, as Miss FM has stated, something rather odd here.
The executor knew you was a beneficiary at the time of your grandmothers death.
He kept that quiet, didn't he?
Depending on how close you are to the executor, I would be inclined to use a bit of pressure on him at this stage.
Ask to see the final accounts of the estate (you are entitled to see these as a beneficiary of the will).
Ask him to account for his spending 80K in those two years, and ask to see any receipts.
I would tell him that I was far from happy at his explanations concerning the estate, and that I was considering asking the probate court to look into the matter of where the money had disappeared too.
This will have one of two effects on him....
Either he will crap himself and give you more money in settlement (if he has any money left) or he may just ignore you if what he told you was the truth (doubtful)

[Hopeful123]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

Thanks Johnboy, you are making a lot of sense. I will bear your suggestions in mind. It's such a difficult situation and one that I was never expecting to be in the middle of!

[des8]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

If you believe the PoA has been abused can raise your concerns with the Office of the Public Guardian.
The Power of Attorney can only be used for the benefit of the donor, and you seem to suspect that there is a possibility that in this case funds of some £80000 have been misused. If this is so it is not only despicable it s a criminal offence.
I don't think there is anyway you can force disclosure of the documents you need to prove or disprove your concerns.
If the office of PG can't/won't help, you can report your concerns to the police.
Do be aware however that if you take these steps there might be unwanted & unexpected repercussions

[MissFM]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

The Office of the PG is unlikely to be of much use, sadly, as they are overstretched - although I do agree with Des that they should be your first port of call and it is their responsibility (duty) to oversee this and you should definitely raise your concerns formally with them. You will need to be very forceful.

If you suspect long term abuse of the P of A then perhaps the police might be an effective recourse. Again, I agree with Des's caveat above.

In your shoes I would also follow Johnboy's suggestions and see what happens.

It's a bugger, isn't it?:tinysmile_hmm_t2:

[Johnboy007]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

If you believe the PoA has been abused can raise your concerns with the Office of the Public Guardian.
The Power of Attorney can only be used for the benefit of the donor, and you seem to suspect that there is a possibility that in this case funds of some £80000 have been misused. If this is so it is not only despicable it s a criminal offence.
I don't think there is anyway you can force disclosure of the documents you need to prove or disprove your concerns.
If the office of PG can't/won't help, you can report your concerns to the police.
Do be aware however that if you take these steps there might be unwanted & unexpected repercussions

I have to agree with des8 here..
Proving there has been anything dodgy going on will be next to impossible...
But maybe the threat of doing something about it, may just shake him up a bit.
There was a very similar case to this on LB, and I advised the guy in question, to put a bit of pressure on his executor by threatening action in the probate court.
The result was that he received from the executor a cheque for the full amount of what was rightfully his.
So sometimes we have to 'bluff' a bit.
aw:

[Hopeful123]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

Thanks again for the prompt responses all. A lot of food for thought, but I agree with MissFM... "it's a bugger!"

[righty]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

Also, it's important to find out if there was any suspicious activity on the bank accounts post death. Money transfers, withdrawals, etc.

[righty]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

AND the fact that they didn't tell you makes me very, very suspicious. Have you spoken to any other beneficiaries & if so what have they said. If they are immediate family don't be surprised if you find that they colluded with the executor to exclude you

[Johnboy007]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

Also, it's important to find out if there was any suspicious activity on the bank accounts post death. Money transfers, withdrawals, etc.

Not an easy thing to do, data protection act for example.
I still think the easiest way is the 'scare tactic'.
Mention fraud and long prison sentence.
If he has got something to hide, the executor will try to cover his tracks, or he will make you an offer.
If he makes you an offer, then he has got something to hide.

[righty]

Re: Money spent by power of attorney/executor prior to death

The DPA does not apply to the dead