Heir Hunters TV series

[marcie dean]

Thought it was interesting yesterday that they talked about the forced child migration and the big investigation into it stared this week.
Barb

my nan was almostone of those but she managed to find her way to her grandparents who then contacted her mother who arranged to collecther at the station with her new husband. sydney

[groom]

I don't know if this been answered anywhere, but what happens if the heir hunters can't find one of the parents of someone who has died intestate and with no siblings - eg they find all the beneficiaries on the maternal side, but because they can't find a record of the father's birth can't work any on the paternal side? Does the estate get split equally with half going to the maternal side and the other half eventually going to the Crown?

[dawnsh]

Missing Beneficiary Indemnity Insurance is taken out which enables the Personal Representatives to distribute the estate to known beneficiaries knowing that if unknown or missing beneficiaries come forward after the date of distribution, the value of their entitlement will be paid out by the insurer.

For the professionals doing the research for their clients, MBI Insurance is a useful safeguard to genealogical research where background information makes effective research impracticable, research has been undertaken but has proved inconclusive or all potential beneficiaries are believed to have been located but sufficient doubt remains about part of the research.

However, MBII does not replace systematic research, a report has to be given showing that every means possible has been undertaken to identify and find the person.

[groom]

Thanks for explaining that Dawn, I'm glad the Crown doesn't get it. 

[Caw1]

Thanks for your great explanation dawns, I have to say I was wondering what happened to the inheritance to a side of the family that seems to be inconclusive at the moment., I'm glad that if anyone is found or comes forward that they are still entitled to a portion.

I found today's two stories interesting.

Caroline

[John915]

Good evening,

I don't know if this been answered anywhere, but what happens if the heir hunters can't find one of the parents of someone who has died intestate and with no siblings - eg they find all the beneficiaries on the maternal side, but because they can't find a record of the father's birth can't work any on the paternal side? Does the estate get split equally with half going to the maternal side and the other half eventually going to the Crown?

If the dead person has no siblings then you are looking for aunts and uncles, the fathers siblings, and their descendants. The fathers marriage certificate will give his father, dead persons grandfather, which will then lead down to any living relatives on that side.

If none are found living then everything goes to the maternal side as far as I am aware.

John915

Added, it seems others can type faster than me.

[groom]

It wasn't so much the not finding any living relatives, John, it was more the not being able to identify the father's family at all, I was wondering about. Dawn's answer makes it clear I think. I know when my mother died we were asked if we wanted to take out MBII, but refused as we were sure there was no one else who could make a claim.

[dawnsh]

Taking out MBI insurance is a last resort but can be considered to be a 'comfort' policy where parts of the family really can't be researched.

Research into intestacy cases involving a recent death and close family members is usually straight forward.

Problems arise with more historic research where the recently elderly deceased was an only child, either didn't marry or did marry but had no children, grandparents were born in the mid 1800's and where families have fractured along the way and no-one has kept in touch. When research starts and living family members are interviewd they have no idea who you are talking about. Then you add in the complications of spelling changes, apparent lack of records, illegitimacy, emigration and all the other problems we as family historians encounter and at some point in time the case manager has to say that no further research is likely to bring results and is not economically viable to carry on.

As soon as insurance is put in place, all further research into the missing person and their branch has to stop as any findings could invalidate the policy.

[LizzieW]

I guess that with more and more heir hunting firms it makes life more difficult as there is always the need to find heirs quicker than the competition so it's possible that corners will be cut.

I was interested in the last programme where an heir hunting company found heirs to the assets of a deceased lady only for the lady's solicitor to go to her property and produce a will, so all their work was in vain.  I wonder why no-one thought to look for the will first?