DWP Recovery from Estates and sharing the funds

[Witch_hazel]

Hi all,

I thought I had finished posting here, after MIL passed away in January last year, but now need some advice on our current situation with her estate and a pending claim from DWP RFE. I appreciate no one here can give binding legal advice, but we are wondering whether we need to get a solicitor involved to help support us with this.

Hubby is her Executor, and we finally completed on her house sale on 18 December. Relieved that we could now collate the final bills and share the estate with the other 2 beneficiaries, we were appalled to receive a call from DWP RFE department on the same day, saying there is a pending investigation on her means-tested benefits, which they may invoke a debt recovery claim against, which will fall to her Executor to settle. We had no idea there was anything outstanding with DWP, but having spoken to them by phone, provided more info on her finances and the probate value of her estate etc, we assumed this would be quickly resolved. However, having spoken to RFE dept since, there is apparently a backlog and it could be months before we get the final outcome, and any refund demand on this. Everything we are reading online is confirming this, and saying we should not share the estate until we know the outcome, as the debt will fall on my husband to settle.

We therefore contacted the other 2 beneficiaries yesterday, suggesting that we pay the majority of the money but retain a few thousand from each of them, to give us a pot to pay off any outstanding money claimed. Hubby’s brother has now come back to say he wants ALL his share NOW and provided a letter that says he will repay his share of anything owed when (if) we get proof from DWP. To complicate things further, he is in Australia, so if he did default on this, we cannot easily knock on his door and appeal for the money back, nor can we easily take him to court if it came to that.

His share will be around £95K and we were proposing to pay him £90K and forward the remainder as soon as the account is settled. We get £95K as well, and her grand-daughter is due £47K (she has agreed to take £45 and allow us to hold £2K from her share).

We (hubby and I) looked after MIL for 7 years before she passed - 24/7 emergency call contacts, did all her shopping, household repairs, bill paying, banking etc, basically helped her stay at home rather than going into care, which was her wish. Since she passed we have organised everything financially, kept meticulous accounts of everything spent, sorted the gravestone, paid bills, cleared, maintained and marketed her property, sorted probate, handled all the utilities etc, and yet still we are facing more hassle in finalising the estate because HE wants his money in full.

Can anyone advise what we should do here please? Our son suggested getting a solicitor involved to draw up a letter stating that we will settle the estate distribution in full, on the understanding that any reimbursement due to DWP is paid by each beneficiary pro-rata according to their share of the estate proceeds. This will obviously incur a fee, but we can charge this back to the estate whilst we still have the funds under our control (which will reduce the final share but so what …).

Any advice much appreciated as I am so pee’d off with the way we are being treated over this, but need to ensure we are not out of pocket when the DWP finally impose any debt demand on us.

If you have read this far, thank you and appreciate any info anyone can give. Thank you

[bowlingbun]

Do NOT distribute any funds until this matter is settled.
I used a solicitor when mum died. Demanding brother thought he should have more than the share he had received, and sent me a nasty letter demanding more. My solicitor wrote back to him. I’ve heard nothing more from brother since, 10 years ago.
Mum was lucky to see brother more than once a year!
Make a subject access request to DWP asking for copies of all mum’s records held by them.
They must reply with the records within a month.

[JayneyT]

@Witch_hazel I’m so sorry to read about the situation you are in. We are in a similar place, although MIL is still alive. In a nutshell DWP informed my husband last April that MIL was still getting AA , even though she has been council funded in a care home since 2020 (self funded before that). They said we should’ve let them know, and that the overpayment was somewhere around £20 K. We didn’t know she was getting AA , as someone else applied for it for her in 2015 when she was estranged from the family with her MH issues. It has taken hubby since last April, wrangling with them to try to get things sorted and it is still not resolved, as in they have yet to come up with an official solution. BUT, every time hubby has asked them what would happen if she died before a resolution is reached they have said that they would only be able to claim what is left, after disbursements (as in funeral expenses etc) have been made from her estate……… ie whatever is left.

Obviously this is not legally confirmed and we do get a different version depending on whom we speak to. It concerns me that your anomaly has only come to light after the death of MIL and they would have to prove with a paper trail what expenses have been incurred and who they informed about it. In our case, they have no proof whatsoever that they tried to warn us in advance.

I would definitely get legal advice sooner rather than later, so you know whether the beneficiaries can be paid, as you may have to wait years for the DWP to investigate what has happened. Good luck

[bowlingbun]

My understanding is that everything has to be settled before funds can be distributed.

[JayneyT]

Interesting, Well we have been told they have no legal power to enforce payment, only to “request” ………particularly if this “debt” has only just come to light nearly a year after the lady passed away. In some cases disbursements would have been made by now anyway.

[Witch_hazel]

Is this from "overpayment " of pension and other benefits made after death, or benefits that the person was no longer entitled to at time of their death. There is apparently a difference. The former can be “requested”, and I think you can ignore especially if there is proof that the death was notified but payments were not stopped immediately (we have already re-paid 2 amounts against this back in March). Payments of means-tested benefits which the recipient may no longer have been due, if their savings etc had increased, are classed as a reclaimable debt, and apparently can be enforced.

[JayneyT]

Thanks for the clarification. My MIL is still living so not quite the same as your case. Hope you get some good advice on it.