Heir Hunting companies

[LizzieL]

This sounds very suspicious 

I'm thinking if the firm get signatures from people not entitled but with same names & can provide a traced line albeit false because of same names then BV would issue the cheque/deposit cash into firms account for them to distribute to the 'inheritors' then once the £s are deposited the firm get back to the 'claimants' to tell them they're not entitled.....£s in their pocket & possibly why they are being investigated 

Annie

I hadn't thought of that possibility

[groom]

I always think that situations like your great uncle, iluleah, are very sad. I'm sure he would have wanted his estate to pass to those he regarded as family, rather than distant cousins who he didn't know. Shows the need to make a will and tell people where it is, especially if you don't have close family to inherit.

[iluleah]

I always think that situations like your great uncle, iluleah, are very sad. I'm sure he would have wanted his estate to pass to those he regarded as family, rather than distant cousins who he didn't know. Shows the need to make a will and tell people where it is, especially if you don't have close family to inherit.

Yes if I watch the Heir Hunter program and see the legal heirs found yet have no clue who the person was and the deceased persons friends who they saw daily for years loved the person, spent time with and in one they even paid for  a head stone for them and receive nothing...if only they had written a Will!

I 'know' my great uncle had a Will he was twice the age of my father and moaned at my father to write Will ( but he didn't) always said he was married and everything was joint names with my mother and with an only child, my mother would get everything and then me! My dad died when I was 17...my mother married 1yr later to someone 12yrs younger with 3 kids likely my mother will 'go' before him................ I know she has written a Will and he gets everything...... 

But my great uncles Will was not 'found' and if it was by who I don't know

[Rosinish]

once the £s are deposited the firm get back to the 'claimants' to tell them they're not entitled.....£s in their pocket & possibly why they are being investigated 

I hadn't thought of that possibility

I think for that reason you need to inform BV asap & the likely inheritor(s) but do it in writing whether email &/or post!

They are not being investigated for no reason!

Annie

[LizzieL]

I think I have tracked down a living relative of the actual deceased lady, grandson of her mother's half sister - don't know if they can inherit if only half blood.

I later found the person I thought was a descendant on FB and sent a message. I've had no reply, but I'm sure the message was read as the picture by the message changes when it's opened.
Today I looked at the BV list and found that the deceased lady's name has disappeared. As the estate wouldn't have gone over the time limit, I assume that means it has now been claimed.

[FraserandFraser]

Long time since I posted here, but I thought this was a thread that I couldn't just let pass.
I am sorry but the problems you have highlighted are some of the issues that we are seeing all the time, thanks to the Heir Hunters TV program the industry has seen the spread of hobby genealogists and enthusiast amateurs delving in to an industry that really should be left for the professionals.
We have seen several firms contacting wrong people because they haven't spent the money to obtain the certs, or have just downloaded a tree.
We have seen lots of cases where even some pro firms have given out totally wrong advice. The most common at the moment is firms telling heirs that they only need to find 1 heir because the Government legal department only need to see 1 claim, this is totally illegal.
It was one of the main reasons the Association of Probate Researchers was founded a-p-r.org

[FraserandFraser]

If you are ever are contacted by an heir hunter and want free advice and to confirm that the firm is real the look at our web page or contact us vir the web page or dm on here

[Trees]

What happens if a firm contacts part of a family but not other members? I have recently been contacted by State Trustees in Australia about a family death I told a family member who told me two family members have already been contacted by F&F but I have not heard from any firm about it even though I know from the information from Australia that I am also on the tree of the deseased?

[Jebber]

Presumably you know the name of the deceased? It would depend on your relationship, if you are only related by marriage, or if the others have a closer relationship to the deceased you may not be entitled. If you think you would be entitled, there is no reason why you shouldn't approach F&F yourself and ask.