Heir Hunting companies

[Bearnan]

I was also contacted by letter by a firm of heir hunters, I would have expected them to contact my sister, three cousins and an uncle as well but they did not. I was pretty sure the information was wrong because I knew it involved half siblings of my grandmother and our half of the family wouldn't be entitled.We don't know much about the people who had a rightful claim. Anyway my cousin rang the heir hunters up and the man was adamant we should claim he knew all about our side of the family, it really shouldn't have taken so long for the penny to drop that they were wrong.

[BumbleB]

Ermmmmmm!  But as long as they get their "cut", do they really care who the true inheritors are? 

Sorry!

[Bearnan]

After a few phone calls to my cousin he actually told her the name of the person who had died once he'd realised we were right. It was nothing like the TV programme.  Our side of the family is small so we knew we weren't in for any money. 

[Pennines]

I, also was contacted by an Heir Hunting firm who had found details of a deceased's parents on my Ancestry tree. My tree was private -but as both parents names came up - they contacted me.

The deceased was a spinster sister of my Irish father in law. All that generation had passed away - and NONE of my husband's generation knew of this aunt. She had died in Eastbourne. Luckily, simply because I am into genealogy - I was able to identify that it was my father in law's eldest sister. I also found her on the Bona Vacantia list.

We knew (or rather assumed) - it would be a peanuts estate - and went alone, without the company. It was laborious though - One person made the claim and we had to supply birth certs, marriage,certs, death certs and wills. My husband's Irish birth cert wouldn't do -- because his original must have been lost and he only had a copy issued 3 years after he was born. So one of his sisters made the claim.

However the Govt dept concerned would ask for some items - then when they had 'ticked' them off -- they would ask for the next lot and so on.

When payment was received by the one claimant - it was then divided by her between the 24 known cousins! Hence I suppose it would have been possible for the claimant to have kept it all.

[groom]

One person made the claim and we had to supply birth certs, marriage,certs, death certs and wills.

So presumably if all that has to be done, if a company has got the wrong family, it should be picked up then? 

I wonder if, after watching programmes such as Heir Hunters, a lot of amateurs have jumped on the band wagon and don't really have the expertise or finances to do it properly? I would certainly be suspicious of companies that rely on trees on sites such as Ancestry as we all know how wrong some of those can be. 

[Pennines]

Groom -- yes you would think, if it was the wrong 'claimant' -- it would be picked up then, because the Heir Hunting company would presumably have to send the evidence through to the Bona Vacantia Division on the claimant's behalf.

I suppose it depends on how much research the BV people then do to satisfy themselves that it is a bona fide claim.

[LizzieL]

I have now received my letter from the HH. Posted 7 Aug, but delayed because it went to the address on electoral register of 2002. We moved in 2003 and opted for closed register as soon as it was possible.

As well as the spurious 3 children even my brother noticed, he has not included the cousin who I understand has signed up (He was born abroad as his father was in RAF at the time). He must have sent letter to his mother (my aunt) who died a few months ago and he got it because he was her executor.
He has missed out another first cousin - can't see why as mmn is correctly transcribed on freebmd.
He has marriage of one of my father's uncles correctly, but didn't spot she was a widow when she married, so has failed to find their children, as they would be indexed with her actual maiden name, not her first married name.
Another of my father's uncles is married correctly but again none of his four children listed - they are also easy to find, especially as their descendants are still living within a mile or two of where my great grandparents are buried.
It's even worse than some ancestry trees!

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.

[groom]

Doesn't sound like a reputable company to me, more like an amateur trying to make a bit of money. Has he now acknowledged that he has the wrong family?

[LizzieL]

The letter looks like it's from a private address, but he has a flashy website which makes it look like a big company. I sent him an email yesterday, suggesting he might consider a different parentage for the deceased lady. So far no response from him.

I've done a bit of research myself since then and think I have discovered a half blood descendant. A proper HH could follow my trail and check by getting certs if there was a reasonable chance of a sizeable estate and it was worth their while.