Probate ect

Pitcher15

Registered User
Dec 23, 2012
22
0
Bridport, dorset
Hi all,
So my dad passed away last week after a 10 year battle with Alzheimer’s. We now have to sort out his money situation and wondered if anyone could help me! He has been self funded in the care home for the last 5 years and has roughly £70000 left in the bank which is a joint account with myself as poa. That is all he has, no savings or house. Do I need probate? Or will his name just be taken off the joint account and then I have to pay funeral and divide the remainder according to his will?
I am off to see the bank on Wednesday I was just wondering in the meantime.
Thanks
Sarah x
 

Pitcher15

Registered User
Dec 23, 2012
22
0
Bridport, dorset
Also! I have received a bill from the care home. He passed away on Friday (31st) which he pays a month in advance, so has paired up until he died. But this invoice is for another week to apparently sort his room out, we have cleared today so do I have grounds to argue or not? The bill is for just over £1000 so quite a lot!!
thanks again!
 

nitram

Registered User
Apr 6, 2011
30,075
0
Bury
The joint account will become a sole account in your name, this is outside of any will, all the bank need to see is a copy of the death certificate.

You may not need probate.
Who is/are the executor(s)?
Who is/are the beneficiary(ies)?
 

Pitcher15

Registered User
Dec 23, 2012
22
0
Bridport, dorset
Thanks for your response. I am the executor and myself and two brothers are the beneficiaries. So fairly easy to sort out just wondered what I needed to do!
 

Duggies-girl

Registered User
Sep 6, 2017
3,620
0
@Pitcher15 I don't know if you need probate or not but I have just completed the online form and it was very easy. Dad had a property and money and all I had to do was basically put the figures in and it worked it all out for me.

It took less than a month for the grant to come back which I found quite amazing because I thought it would take months.

You have to sort out HMRC before you apply for probate and that was pretty simple online too.
 

Louise7

Volunteer Host
Mar 25, 2016
4,689
0
Also! I have received a bill from the care home. He passed away on Friday (31st) which he pays a month in advance, so has paired up until he died. But this invoice is for another week to apparently sort his room out, we have cleared today so do I have grounds to argue or not? The bill is for just over £1000 so quite a lot!!
thanks again!

You'll need to check what is in the care home contract but it does seem fairly standard to request a week's charge to prepare the room for the next resident. Aside from the belongings being removed there would need to be a deep clean (especially with the current covid situation) and possibly some redecoration such as a lick of paint etc before they could admit a new resident.
 

theunknown

Registered User
Apr 17, 2015
433
0
From memory of dealing with my mum's will as executor, you don't need probate if your dad's estate only consists of the money in the bank. However, I think you'll need proof of your authority to deal with the estate for the bank to change the account arrangements, eg registration of death certificate and i.d. for yourself, perhaps proof of current address. Presumably it's helpful that you've got history with the bank. I had probate and found the recent ability to carry that out online really useful - this is dependant on the size of the estate and any potential for inheritance tax. For me it was so straightforward, but even if you don't need probate I think the official government website is really useful in letting you know all the steps you need to take. Obviously the advice is free but there are sites out there who'll charge you for the same information, so people need to be careful of what they're clicking on.

As for the care home extra charges I think, as Louise said, it's pretty standard to charge fees beyond the date of the resident's death. The information about this will be in the terms and conditions that are signed when the person is admitted. It's a hell of a lot of money, but I know in some cases they charge a full month's fee, even if the resident dies at the beginning of that month. They'll have expenses that arise between a resident leaving the room and another one moving in.
 

Jessbow

Registered User
Mar 1, 2013
5,678
0
Midlands
Be careful with the joint account. Just because you name is on it as a joint signatory, can you honestly say you contributed half the funds?

Will only half of it be attributed to your late fathers estate?
When exeuting my late mothers estate, it was a question I was asked
 

Pitcher15

Registered User
Dec 23, 2012
22
0
Bridport, dorset
Please be assured I’m not after all of dads money not even half of it!! My brothers and me will be sharing it out equally once all debts are paid, I only mentioned it being a joint account as I didn’t know if it changed anything. Thank you for all your input, I will try and contact someone tomorrow.
 

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