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General => The Common Room => The Lighter Side => Topic started by: danuslave on Monday 09 November 20 00:19 GMT (UK)
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I have been contacted by a firm of heir hunters, Treethorpe Ltd. Does anyone know anything (good or bad) about them?
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I assume you have been contacted by them as they are investigating an estate which had no direct heirs. Did they give any indication as to why they contacted you or whose estate they were investigating?
They appear to have good reviews which appear on their website. You have to remember of course that these companies take a chunk of whatever is available. There is no clue from their fees section as to what they actually charge, it's all suitably bland and vague.
https://treethorpe.com/fees-and-commissions/
In theory you could do your own research, depends on whether the name means anything and what the value of the estate is. If you know the name and when this person died you could check the Bona Vacantia website to see if the name is there.
This is information about unclaimed estates from the UK Govt.
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/unclaimed-estates-list
Up to you whether you take this any further.
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As suggested, check the Bona Vacanta website, but do go back a couple of years if you find no recognisable surname on your first go.
Then, if you have not already done so I would make a stab at expanding your tree sideways so you have all distant Cousins, 2nd Cousins etc.
If you then still cannot make a connection go with the Heir Hunters but do negotiate fees.
I presume that you will have to provide certificates to show your valid relationship to the deceased and these could mount up to a fair amount which is why the Heir Hunters may be a reasonable option.
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Thanks for these responses. All they have told me so far is that the estate belonged to someone related to my paternal grandparents. As my grandfather had 9 siblings who lived to adulthood I could have my work cut out trying to wade through them all!
I think I will see what else they have to say, and not sign anything without reading the small print very carefully!
Watch this space
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Thanks for these responses. All they have told me so far is that the estate belonged to someone related to my paternal grandparents. As my grandfather had 9 siblings who lived to adulthood I could have my work cut out trying to wade through them all!
I think I will see what else they have to say, and not sign anything without reading the small print very carefully!
Watch this space
In that case as well there could be a lot of heirs, so the shares may not be that much unless the estate is large. Maybe you could agree to sign up on the condition they give you a copy of the tree and certificates when they have finished, that alone might be worth it!
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My Grandfather was also one of nine and of those nine, one died in infancy and of the remaining eight half are presently blank on my tree as I cannot ID who or where or if they married with any degree of certainty.
It is imo the mobility of WW1 and after that lead to family members moving away. Of the males marrying in a town remote from their upbringing as a result of a meeting occuring during and/or after WW1.
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If you have contact with someone who has the same names in their tree on Ancestry, you could ask if they have been contacted in the same way.
Carol
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Update - I have spoken to the case manager and they do seem legit. She has already told me the name of the person concerned, and I haven't signed anything yet!
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That is interesting if they have told you the name, couldn't you do bit of research yourself quickly
Louisa Maud
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I think it's likely they are confident of having information that is not easy to come by? ;D
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I do wonder sometimes whether these heir hunting firms have access to government records that the general public can't. Whether that's true or not I don't know.
Some information here about being contacted by an heir hunting firm:-
https://www.yourmoney.com/saving-banking/contacted-by-an-heir-hunter-how-to-tell-if-its-genuine/
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Just for info --- we were contacted by a firm of Heir Hunters a few years ago. I checked on them, like you, and they were legit.
They didn't give me a name BUT - they had contacted me firstly via Ancestry, enquiring initially about my husband's grandparents. My tree was private so I asked this person how they thought they were related before I opened the tree. At that they revealed they were Heir Hunters and gave me the company name.
Hence knowing the surname they were looking at - I searched Bona Vacantia and discovered that the eldest sister, unmarried -- of my father in law, was listed. No amounts were shown.
We decided to go it alone, as it was a big family and we contacted almost 30 other descendants. We had to send several records to the Gov Dept -- then they would send those back and ask for the next lot and so on. It was as though they were checking and ticking off that evidence before proceeding to ask for the next batch of evidence. Only one member of the family applied (otherwise it would have been a nightmare).
It was rather laborious I have to say -- and a very small estate. However it was so interesting to see how the system worked. We did split it between all my husbands brothers, sisters and cousins. Quite a lot of admin was involved!
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Interesting topic thanks for sharing your decision making process
My grandfather was one of ten ...his siblings emigrated worldwide ive just traced the final branch of descendants..they were actually in England but hardest to find ...it took 11 years
So if you dont know the siblings already I can imagine how hard it would be .
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In our case it was an Irish family -- but my father in law's generation had all sadly died - the last one, earlier in the same year that the Heir Hunters contacted us.
One of my husband's cousins knew that the eldest sister, Mary (the one on the Bona Vacantia list) -- had run away from Ireland to England in her teens (possibly pregnant?) -- and as far as anyone knew all contact was lost with her family.
My father in law certainly never mentioned her (and he talked a lot!!)
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Forgot to say - the case manager said that all beneficiaries will get a family tree and copies of the certificates they have got. Those alone will save me a few pennies
The estate isn't on Bona Vacantia. The lady concerned was in a home for most of her life and could not have made a legitimate will. I suspect that Treethorpe have been engaged directly to deal with the estate
Thanks for the interest. I'll keep you posted with progress!
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Good Luck danuslave -- it's exciting when you have that contact from Heir Hunters isn't it.
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One of the problems about doing it yourself I believe is that you would need to take out an insurance just in case someone who had a claim appeared later!
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I have received more information about the estate from Treethorpe, still without signing up (though I will)
To paraphrase from their brochure:-
"We do not use the expression Heir Hunter to describe ourselves or our service. Our Probate Research estate work mostly originates from cases referred by a local authority or the last organisation/body responsible for the care of the individual whilst they were alive"
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So I wonder how they know for certain that there is no will?
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Checked the find a will website maybe?
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So I wonder how they know for certain that there is no will?
It needn't necessarily mean there is no will. I'm not saying that is the case in this instance, but can give an example where this may happen.
Mary Smith makes a will leaving everything to John Brown, if Mary has not stipulated what was to happen to her estate if John predeceases her, which he does, then the legacy fails and you are back in the same position as if there had been no will.
I'm no expert but I believe this is correct. That's why it's important to cover such an eventuality when making a will.
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I did some research work for a Canadian legal firm a couple of years ago, and wrote to two beneficiaries in the UK that I identified on their behalf.
Last time I spoke with the lawyer, not long ago, they still have had no response from either despite a follow up letter .....
I know the estate value is around £375k, so someone's missing out there !
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I did some research work for a Canadian legal firm a couple of years ago, and wrote to two beneficiaries in the UK that I identified on their behalf.
Last time I spoke with the lawyer, not long ago, they still have had no response from either despite a follow up letter .....
I know the estate value is around £375k, so someone's missing out there !
In fairness Antony, with the increase of scams across the globe, I think I'd be wary.
Though would probably know if I had possible Canadian relatives on my tree and be computer savvy enough to do at least an initial web check to see if the company was legitimate. Not everyone is in the same position.
Shame though, if they could have benefitted.
Boo
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Checked the find a will website maybe?
That's only any good if probate has been applied for. How would anyone know if I'd made a will apart from the fact that when I did it my executors got a letter? If I'd just written one, got it witnesses properly but then tucked it away, unless people searched for it, they wouldn't know.
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I do research for a firm in the UK as well in the attempt to find legal heirs for estates that appear both on the Bona Vacantia list as well as those that come directly from solicitors. These firms like to develop relationships with the solicitors so that it stays off the list. That said, I do know that you can negotiate the fees that these firms charge, especially if you're contacted by more than one of them.