Choosing Executors Carefully

A recent case has once again highlighted the importance of clients choosing their executors with care. The case involved an executor who ‘went too far’ and was sued by the beneficiaries for failing to administer the estate.

The executor was a friend of the lady who died in 2006. Under the terms of the Will she gave a right of occupation of her property to another friend then left her estate to be divided between three animal charities.

The charities, on becoming aware of their entitlement under the Will, made enquiries of the executor to establish their entitlement. The executor supplied them with a copy of the Will and a letter apparently signed by the life tenant expressing that she wished to stay in the house. The charities made repeated enquiries but the executor provided incomplete responses and a valuation that was much lower than those carried out by the charities.

Now suspicious by the executor’s actions they made further enquiries and were shocked to find out that the life tenant had actually lived in sheltered accommodation for quite some time and that the executor was currently residing in the property. As beneficiaries, the charities applied to have the executor removed by the court and replaced with a professional executor. Not only did the court agree but also ordered the executor to pay the costs incurred by the charities in sending repeated solicitors letters and obtaining valuations.

Although clearly within their rights in this case charities are notoriously aggressive where they are appointed beneficiaries of an estate. Leaving a fixed sum to a charity is preferable however caution should be exercised when deciding the amount as a specific bequest is paid in preference to any residuary payment meaning that, potentially, they may be nothing left for the ultimate beneficiaries.

The case also highlights the benefits of having a professional executor appointed, even if it is alongside the clients chosen lay executors. Using a professional dispels the possibility of leaving an executor open to aggressive tactics used by charities and any potential claim against them personally, even for innocent mistakes.

At The Will Centre, we offer the service of being appointed as a professional executor, and therefore we can administer the estate quickly and efficiently for clients. If you would like The Will Centre to act for you in the administration of an estate, including a person who had died, then please call us on 01752-607040.

Happy New Year

As 2009 draws to a close and we head into 2010, The Will Centre Team would like to wish you a Happy New Year.

We have some very exciting developments to announce in 2010 but in the meantime we hope you enjoy the remainder of the festive break.

Alan, Barry, Mandy & Ray.

A New Tax Year, a New IHT nil-rate band

The 6th April 2009, is the start of the new tax year. The Inheritance Tax (IHT) Nil-rate Band increases from £312,000 to £325,000 per individual.

An increase of £13,000 in the band at an IHT rate of 40% means a potential additional IHT saving in the new tax year of £5,200 for an individual and £10,400 for a married couple or registered civil partnership where the survivor is able to claim both their own and the transferable nil-rate band.

The nil-rate band is due to increase to £350,000 per individual on 6th April 2010, but with the current economic situation and a budget due soon it may be that this increase is under threat.

For advice on saving IHT or using the transferable nil-rate band option please contact The Will Centre on 01752-607040.

Probate Scams

Please be aware that there are currently several Probate scams in operation via the Internet. Many of these will inform the recipient that they are the beneficiary of a substantial legacy but will ask for fees and/or taxes in advance of sending more information or the release of funds.

These will always be fraudulent and on no account should you make any payment or transfer any funds. You can obtain further information and advice concerning such scams on www.met.police.uk/fraudalert You will also find information about reporting such activity to the police, as the police may be able to close down the e-mail accounts concerned.

Alan Porter, of The Will Centre, says this follows the typical scam tricks of enticing you to part with money up front. Of course you never should have to pay up front as a reputable firm will take any fees from the estate of the deceased. The Office of Fair Trading also has information on scams at http://www.oft.gov.uk/oft_at_work/consumer_initiatives/scams/

If you need advice on Probate then please call The Will Centre on 01752-607040. We offer a FREE, no obligation, 30 minute interview at our offices.

HMRC Phishing Attack

Banks have been made aware of the following phishing attack on HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).

A bogus email claiming to be from HMRC is telling recipients they are due a tax refund and asking for account or credit card details so that a (fictitious) tax refund can be paid.

HMRC have confirmed that they will only ever contact customers in writing to confirm tax refunds.

Should you receive such an email, do not open, click on the website link or provide any confidential details and immediately forward it to phishing@hmrc.gsi.gov.uk for investigation.

Happy Christmas/New Year

Cleaner fails to clean up Will properly!

A CLEANER who faked her landlord's will to make herself the sole beneficiary of his £125,000 estate was last night behind bars. Ilona Zimon, of Oxford, faked Dusan Duvnjak's will to eliminate his two children and make herself the only heir to his three houses, car and other belongings.

The 50-year-old also changed all references to herself in the will as Mr Duvnjak's "beloved partner" and ordered her name should be the only one included on his headstone.
Mr Duvnjak's family became suspicious after Zimon faxed them a copy of the will shortly after his death in January 2006 showing his two children - Marko, 23, and Mara, 25 - had been disinherited.

They employed a handwriting expert who examined the document and found Mr Duvnjak's signature was an exact copy of the one on the original will - something that is impossible to recreate naturally and could only be done by photocopying or tracing. Mr Duvnjak's ex-wife Diane, the mother of his two children, said her former husband's houses had been worth about £650,000 but were heavily mortgaged. he 51-year-old, of Shelford Place, Headington, said it had been a battle to prove the will was a fake. She said: "It is an embarrassment to have to go through all of this. It is very personal. It is a disbelief that somebody would take a person that is so vulnerable and say that they cared for him and yet hurt the people that he actually cared most about. People do make ad-hoc wills, but this was a document of such appalling taste that it actually made some members of the family feel like they were going to vomit."

Builder and decorator Mr Duvnjak, known as Denis, died in January 2006 from a fall after a long battle with alcoholism. His brother David, 62, added he believed Zimon had been planning the will forgery for years. He said: "I thought that was the only reason she was living with him. I am pleased justice has been done." Zimon had denied forgery but was convicted by a jury after a trial at Oxford Crown Court last month.

Alistair Grainger, defending, said Zimon had no previous convictions and was believed by many of her employers to be trustworthy. Sentencing her to 12 months' jail, Judge Patrick Eccles said: "What is plain is that the family were deeply distressed at having their names taken off the headstone. The court has to take a serious view of this offence because a will is a public document in which the public have to have trust. You photocopied the signature on the original will. You were due to inherit 20 per cent but plainly were not satisfied. You were not under financial or psychological pressure and therefore, based on the jury's verdict, I must find that you did it out of greed."

The jury cleared Zimon's co-accused, Soossapillai Ramesh, 44, of Peckham Rye, London, of forging a will. Speaking after the case, Det Con Mark Lacey said it was the first case involving a forged will that anyone at Oxford CID could remember. He said: "I think the sentence shows that the courts have taken attempts to forge wills very seriously."