Arkless Electronics
Trade: Amp design and repairs.
Are there any solicitors on pfm who could help please?
I mentioned the sudden death of my friend of 38 years (who was an avid vintage hi fi collector and restorer) about a week ago.
I'm hoping the great collective wisdom and specialists on everything and anything here on pfm can help to prevent an utter travesty and injustice over his estate.
My friends parents died in an accident when he was a about 5 and he was brought up by an aunt and uncle who treated him very badly to say the least... The details are I'm sure irrelevant.
My friend hated these people, and the few remaining family members he had, who were all "part of that clan" with a vengeance. The aunt and uncle died leaving a cousin who, if anything, he hated even more, as his "official" next of kin.
I have strong recollections of him making a will. He was absolutely adamant that whatever the future held "those people" were not to see a penny when he passed away and this was his entire reason for making a will! IE to cut these people out of it! It goes without saying that I never enquired as to who the beneficiaries would be. He never volunteered this either.
It would have been around the late 80's when he made the will and I recall he used one of those services you used to see in the Radio Times etc where there would be ads for "Have you made a will? Do it today!"
I recall on a few visits to him around this time him having various documents/paperwork on a low coffee table in his living room which pertained to the then on going process of putting the will in action. Also his saying how morbid and strange it felt to be thinking of his own demise but that he needed to make sure "just in case" that THEY got nothing and that this was why he was doing it. Unfortunately I do not know with complete certainty that it was completed etc.... I presume it was. It's not exactly something one asks about.
There has been a police and coroners appeal in local media etc for any family to come forward and surprise surprise this cousin and her husband who he despised and had not spoken to for over 30 years have come forward and have been accepted as his only family... It seems they have already within a day or two been given access to his property and may have already gone through it....
As I moved to Northumberland around 17 years ago I have had no contact with any of his other friends during this time, almost all of them who survive have known him for less time than I have and a very close friend of his I talked to at length today says he cannot recall my friend ever mentioning anything about a will... I guess it's not something one really natters about... thoughts of ones own death etc etc.. This close friend of his knew all about his upbringing and his hatred for "the family" and agreed it would be bizarre for him not to have left a will to prevent them inheriting. He recalled my friend having a safe... which triggered a memory for me also that yes he did.
The friend of my friend whom a spoke to this morning is going to speak to other friends of his that he knows of and see if he mentioned anything to any of them.
I rang the coroners office to tell them I was pretty certain he left a will and I was told that as a verified family member had now come forward that basically EVERYTHING was now in their control and it was out of their hands... they had done their job by finding "a relative"l!!
The friend of my friend reckoned that already these "vultures" are trying to arrange the cheapest, quickest funeral possible and about 40 miles from where my friend lived (ie close and convenient for THEM!) and were asking for no hymns no readings no poems etc etc... An inconvenience they want out of the way as quick and easy as possible no doubt judging from what my friend told me about them!
Sorry folks if this has been a bit of a rambling TLDR... I'm trying to "set the scene" I guess... My old friend will be rotating already in the mortuary fridge never mind rotating in his grave!
I guess I'm asking if there is anything that can be done? MOST IMPORTANTLY, surely there must be some record kept when someone makes a will, and specifically to avoid a situation where "hostile" relatives come forward and say "no there was no will we know of so it's all ours" and then "take control" of all further proceedings? Is there some national register or some such?
He had a safe.... this seems the likely place any paperwork would be... but it seems as I said that the vultures have already been given access to his property with power to take away or open it no doubt!?
His mate I talked to today fully agreed with me that if he left everything to an animal shelter/what have you then great... But his most deeply held wish would have been to make sure these very "people" didn't get there hands on it! He owned outright his house.... so even without his collection of vintage hi fi and watches there is no doubt a substantial estate...
HELP!!
I mentioned the sudden death of my friend of 38 years (who was an avid vintage hi fi collector and restorer) about a week ago.
I'm hoping the great collective wisdom and specialists on everything and anything here on pfm can help to prevent an utter travesty and injustice over his estate.
My friends parents died in an accident when he was a about 5 and he was brought up by an aunt and uncle who treated him very badly to say the least... The details are I'm sure irrelevant.
My friend hated these people, and the few remaining family members he had, who were all "part of that clan" with a vengeance. The aunt and uncle died leaving a cousin who, if anything, he hated even more, as his "official" next of kin.
I have strong recollections of him making a will. He was absolutely adamant that whatever the future held "those people" were not to see a penny when he passed away and this was his entire reason for making a will! IE to cut these people out of it! It goes without saying that I never enquired as to who the beneficiaries would be. He never volunteered this either.
It would have been around the late 80's when he made the will and I recall he used one of those services you used to see in the Radio Times etc where there would be ads for "Have you made a will? Do it today!"
I recall on a few visits to him around this time him having various documents/paperwork on a low coffee table in his living room which pertained to the then on going process of putting the will in action. Also his saying how morbid and strange it felt to be thinking of his own demise but that he needed to make sure "just in case" that THEY got nothing and that this was why he was doing it. Unfortunately I do not know with complete certainty that it was completed etc.... I presume it was. It's not exactly something one asks about.
There has been a police and coroners appeal in local media etc for any family to come forward and surprise surprise this cousin and her husband who he despised and had not spoken to for over 30 years have come forward and have been accepted as his only family... It seems they have already within a day or two been given access to his property and may have already gone through it....
As I moved to Northumberland around 17 years ago I have had no contact with any of his other friends during this time, almost all of them who survive have known him for less time than I have and a very close friend of his I talked to at length today says he cannot recall my friend ever mentioning anything about a will... I guess it's not something one really natters about... thoughts of ones own death etc etc.. This close friend of his knew all about his upbringing and his hatred for "the family" and agreed it would be bizarre for him not to have left a will to prevent them inheriting. He recalled my friend having a safe... which triggered a memory for me also that yes he did.
The friend of my friend whom a spoke to this morning is going to speak to other friends of his that he knows of and see if he mentioned anything to any of them.
I rang the coroners office to tell them I was pretty certain he left a will and I was told that as a verified family member had now come forward that basically EVERYTHING was now in their control and it was out of their hands... they had done their job by finding "a relative"l!!
The friend of my friend reckoned that already these "vultures" are trying to arrange the cheapest, quickest funeral possible and about 40 miles from where my friend lived (ie close and convenient for THEM!) and were asking for no hymns no readings no poems etc etc... An inconvenience they want out of the way as quick and easy as possible no doubt judging from what my friend told me about them!
Sorry folks if this has been a bit of a rambling TLDR... I'm trying to "set the scene" I guess... My old friend will be rotating already in the mortuary fridge never mind rotating in his grave!
I guess I'm asking if there is anything that can be done? MOST IMPORTANTLY, surely there must be some record kept when someone makes a will, and specifically to avoid a situation where "hostile" relatives come forward and say "no there was no will we know of so it's all ours" and then "take control" of all further proceedings? Is there some national register or some such?
He had a safe.... this seems the likely place any paperwork would be... but it seems as I said that the vultures have already been given access to his property with power to take away or open it no doubt!?
His mate I talked to today fully agreed with me that if he left everything to an animal shelter/what have you then great... But his most deeply held wish would have been to make sure these very "people" didn't get there hands on it! He owned outright his house.... so even without his collection of vintage hi fi and watches there is no doubt a substantial estate...
HELP!!