Advice Please

[jack daniels]

My father doesn't want to leave a will as he says he doesn't have anything of value. He doesn't own any property and all he has is Bank/Building society accounts. If he doesn't leave a will, in the event of his death, does a named next-of-kin automatically receive said amounts from these accounts, as long as a death certificate is provided? If a second persons name is added to his accounts which are in his name, again does that person receive whatever is in those accounts. TIA

[JimF]

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

Then read this: https://farewill.com/articles/what-is-next-of-kin#:~:text=Next%20of%20kin%20is%20the,takes%20responsibility%20when%20someone%20dies.

[ubasses]

Below is a flowchart which lays out who inherits in the case of intestacy.
https://www.hughjames.com/documents/docs/2020/intestacy-rules-flow-chart-february-2020-6443.pdf
If the Bank accounts are held in joint names, they automatically become the property of the sole survivor.

[-SharonA-]

No will then no gets a penny. My dad was the same did not want to leave a will. But when my dad was ailing, he added me to his bank account and when he passed. I had no trouble getting all what was in his account once I'd shown a death certificate.

[-SharonA-]

^^^^ no one.

[New Judge]

//No will then no[one] gets a penny.//

Where does it all go then? (Clue: see the answers above).

[woofgang]

no. https://www.gov.uk/inherits-someone-dies-without-will

also this https://www.ibblaw.co.uk/insights/blog/joint-bank-accounts-post-death-clarity-intention-key

[New Judge]

Just as an aside "next-of-kin" has no legal meaning.

[Buenchico]

As NJ states, there's no legal meaning to 'next of kin' (and definitely no meaning to 'named next of kin). The ONLY way to name a specific beneficiary (or a specific group of beneficiaries) is by writing a will.

If your father dies without leaving a will then, by law, his estate MUST be distributed in accordance with the information about 'intestacy' in the links above. If his estate is small then the relevant bank(s) and/or building societies MIGHT not require anyone to apply for 'letters of administration' (which is a legal grant, equivalent to 'probate' where a will has been left, giving the holder the right to access and distribute the estate of the deceased). They all have different rules though; see here:
https://www.co-oplegalservices.co.uk/media-centre/articles-may-aug-2018/bank-limits-for-probate/

If the estate is larger than the limits shown above, then a relevant person will need to acquire 'letters of administration' before the funds held by your father's estate can be accessed and distributed. (The application needs to be made to the local Probate Registry).

Money held in a joint account with another person automatically passes to the survivor following the death of one of the account holders. However adding a second person to an account does, of course, open up the risk of them clearing out that account while the original account holder is still alive!

[JimF]

You would be well advised to try to convince your father of the sense of creating a will. It needn't take long or cost much, or say more than he leaves everything to you.

[woofgang]

Buenchico, my link about joint accounts says there may be a problem if all the money in a joint account was put in by one person and that is the person who dies.

[Peter Pedant]

look under intestacy
Chris Buenochico was ( and perhaps still is! ) a will writer and writes clearly on this relatively straightforward subject.

[if he is a widower, as clearly his dear wife would keep him in order - then the children get it in equal parts]

Barmaid (QC in equity practice) has commented that next of kin now only applies to hospital records

The one who commented - ti si really easy just show a deaf certificate is NOT right

A joint account goes to the other joint holder automatically - BUT who ever said - there may be difficulties is referring to Re Northall - here

https://www.lawgazette.co.uk/law/probate-resulting-trust-and-joint-bank-accounts-/56341.article

[if someone contributes £45 000 to a jt acct - then it remains 'his' on account ( ! ha pun intended) of the principle of equitable tracing.](*)

yeah chris has not updated his legal doo-dah on jt accts. [Northall (fils) said that altho his mother has put in the money, it was his and so he didnt have to pay IHT on it when she died. You can imagine what the tax judges made of that one]

er and that is about it

[Peter Pedant]

(*) as an aside - Northall isnt understood by a lot of people. I wanted to withdraw - no I wanted to show I had the moolah for a house deposit. I submitted a deposit jt acct statement in support

the mortgage co wanted my jt holder to specify that no matter what he had no interest in the money

I said it was ridiculous as I cd show I had paid in the money and the joint holder agreed to all that

jointy then popped up his head the next week, and said he didnt wish to make any untrue signed statement to a mortgage co.

I said the law is clear on this: it is my money as I put it in. So incredibly I am asking you to make a true statement.

oh lardy daaah ! and so it went on - he never signed and I had to raise the deposit by prost+t+tion - hard graft I can tell you

a neighbour said: "yeah we made our sister repay money out of my mothers jt acct which she had spent on herself. My mother was vulnerable and social services did it."

Get the old fool to write a will
am I allowed to say that?
some details have been er anonymised

[Buenchico]

As PP indicates, although the general principle is that any money held in a joint account automatically passes to the surviving account holder, there can be legal challenges to it. e.g. https://www.ibblaw.co.uk/insights/blog/joint-bank-accounts-post-death-clarity-intention-key#:~:text=The%20usual%20position%20is%20that,terms%20of%20the%20deceased's%20Will.&text=The%20starting%20point%20is%20a,will%20fall%20within%20his%20estate.

Writing a will is simple and inexpensive. It needn't even cost your father a penny. All he needs to do is to get hold of 'Wills and Probate', in the 'Which? Essential Guides' series. (It's available from most public libraries, or see my link below). He can use that to help him draft his will. If he's then 100% certain that he's got it right, he can sign it in the presence of two witnesses and he's completed the task free of charge. If, however, he's got any doubts about his draft, he can take it to a solicitor to get it put straight. (Someone here recently said that they'd been quoted £120 for such a task. Some charities have solicitors who will do it for free if you leave them a small bequest).

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[Peter Pedant]

Barmaid has pointed out that 2/3 of the pop dont make wills

and I have noticed - as this case shows - it is sometimes a positive decision to die intestate.

[I reckon to avoid fambly quarrels before you die]

[jack daniels]

Thank you so much for the replies - wow there's so much. Father is adamant that he won't write a will. There's 3 siblings. I need to take time & read the links provided, again thanks to all. Anna x