Where there is a will, there'sa relative in the woodwork.

abbey If you don't write a will your money will eventually go to your nearest relatives.

If they contest the will they will spend an arm and a leg on legal fees so why not just leave your money to the cats' home.

abbey If you don't write a will your money will eventually go to your nearest relatives

Is that true? I always thought it went to the state. I could be wrong.
Perhaps there are different rules in different parts of the UK.

The law has to allow a will to be challenged as in some cases undue influence may have been brought to bear or a person may not have been of sound mind. But challenges are very rare and very rarely successful. If you know who you want or don't want to have your money, then leave a will. Do it whilst you're compos mentis and have it done properly and then its just about certain that your wishes will be carried out.

The cats home might well have to spend the money I intend for the cats to defend their rights to the money.

I need to be sure my money goes where I ask for it to go. At the moment OH is alive and so intestecy suitsme. It cannot be contested. What he does afterwards is up to him ( he has no family either).

But I would come back and haunt anyone who wanted to take my money on some spurious grounds of having fetched up every day in the last year just to see when I was going to pop my clogs ( or even help me along as my own brother might!).

It annoys me that relatives seem to have this arogant suggestion that they have a " right".

If I write a will I want to know my will stands.'

I get your point though abbey.

But I suppose a will can be contested if someone thinks that a person is not well when writing it.
Though in the link, I didnt see that the relatives thought that was the case.

Soon- I can't believe you really thought that [shocked]. If there are no relatives at all it goes to the state except in Cornwall I believe where such estates go Charles - FFS!

x post.

The only bit in the link that did make me have a bit of a think, was the part where it said that she was a carer, and thus he was reliant on her.
A bit like a GP relationship I suppose.
I cant say that I have seen that point contested in law before?

If the police chief has got this far about contesting the will, I wouldnt have thought he is going to back down. Probably silly him?

oh, it is no relatives at all?

Just as well you put me right GrannyTwice.

soon, If somebody dies intestate, firms like Heirhunters are employed to track down any possible living relatives. If they are successful they take a percentage of the estate for their trouble. If no relatives can be found the money goes to the state.

If a relative is known to the deceased it's in their best interest to pop up ASAP and make their claim to avoid extra costs as it can rumble on for years.

Its been some years since I was preparing Wills but I seem to recall someone stating in the Will that he did not want his son to benefit from his estate and gave the reason why (in this case it was because he had already given a lot of money to him and didn't want him to get any more!). A lot of Solicitors give a free half hour appointment so you could discuss your options.

You and you OH could make Wills leaving everything to each other and when the survivor dies any money left to go to a named charity.

If you put off making a Will there is more chance your relatives could claim you didn't know what you were doing.

I found this useful, easy to use website.

https://www.gov.uk/inherits-someone-dies-without-will

I put in the op's situation, and pretended she is in England/Wales.

It seems that her brother would inherit [assuming her OH is no longer alive]. But if her brother dies before her, it doesnt look like her nephew would inherit, and her estate would go to the Crown.

That is if abbey chooses not to make a will.

Now had a reread of the op, and I notice that it is your half-brother.
I didnt notice that before.

If you want to do the Government link, it seems to be quick and straightforward.

No, the half-brother's son would inherit, soontobe.

I am circumspect about willsbecauseI have had such bad experiences I guess. I think there needs to be a much improved way, and it should be bannged to rights.

In the caseof my aunt , an in lawmanaged to getto the hospital and he got the death certificate and her personal effects before I was even told she had passedaway. I waslivid. He told the hospitalhe was her " brother". He was brother in law. It still upsets me that despite having been told I was next of kin and to be contacted the hospital didnt do it.

So he got off with around £30K of bank accounts and effects . He was even trying to sell her house. I only found out by accident because he had to get my aunt burried and the under taker knew I was nextof kin and not him and he contacted me.

I was mortified and I am still angrywith the hospital who gave a death certificate to this man - not only that I was told if I wanted to make an issue of it I had to report an 85 year old man to the police - the pensions people even told me that I had to " challenge" this mans right to the pension! He had simply got there first. I had the locks changed to stop him doing more damange to the house and her things. I had to go tothe solicitor who held her house deeds ( they were not registered because she had the house beforethe act in 1951) and he had just been about to give the deeds to this brother in law. None of the checked. Makes me look grabbing, but I was not.

Of course my aunt was intestate ( if didnt stop him rumaging through the effects for what he could get) and that meant it was my inheritance - which my aunt knew because she left me instructions ( in my own hands) as to what I was to do after she passed on.

But thats not the only one. I know someone else who burnt a will ( not her husbands but his first wifes will which left her half of the house to her nephew and neices) to ensure she didnt have to share her second husbands chatells with his first family. I alos know my own husbands aunt divided his fathers will ( asexecutor) between his sisters and left him out except for a few odd valuless things. We only found out therewas a will after it had been filed even though OH was a beneficiary - so wills seem pointless when so much goes wrong.

Might as well just go to the Prince of Wales for all the choice there is in the end..

This is such a load of cods.

It takes more than producing a death certificate to get a bank to hand over £30,000 abbey.

Then after all that my dear estranged wastrell, owes more than I have in the bank brother was telling me what I should do with MY money and treating it as if it was his inheritance.

Really hospitals, solicitors and all relatives in the woodwork need to understand that it is not their money to tell me what to do with it and they should meticulously follow through the rules. There are too many of these cases.

It takes a death certificate to get less than £6K. My aunt has a number of small accunts whiuch he cleaned out before I heard from the under taker. Thats why a death certificate should never be given to the wrong person.

Merlotgran - who are you to accuse my experience of being cods?

Also Anna, having been given the keys tomy aunts house he was able to go through and sell valuables. Some of the thingswere precious to me as items. He soldthem and I could not getthem back.

She also had around £10K cash in the house - he took that too.

You are right Ana.

Best for me to not post on this thread again.
Sorry everyone.

Whats wrong with you?I tell a true story and I have to be treated like a troll is that it? I have actually mentioned this before ( you can check). I think that attitude is rubbish soontobe.

At least if this thread does nothing else it can stand as a warning to other people about what can happen. I hope so.