Can you help me with bureaucracy questions after someone's death, please ?

[Miss-Shelf]

TLDR; 1. anyone know how to get into someone's iPhone and mac book after their death.?

2. Can banks release all cash before probate if the estate is well under the threshold?

3. How accurate does a probate estimate have to be ?

4. What's your experience of utility companies after a person death?

My boyfriend died 2 weeks ago. I'm not the executor of his will but I have been tasked by him with some things surrounding his death

Myself, one of his sisters and one of his brothers have arranged his funeral. My boyfriend knew he was unwell over a long time and he saved 4k in a joint account with his brother which gives us cash flow for 2/3 funeral costs

We don't know how much he has in his current a/c and savings.

Its possible he has cash in a pension plan and he may get death in service benefit from local government pension but he owns no property so unlikely to be anywhere near the probate lower threshold

We spoke to his banks today about them paying invoice for the funeral direct to funeral directors before probate and they agreed in principle but wont confirm how much is in his bank account till they get an original copy of the death certificate

His sister has been given responsibility for sorting his things out so she has moved over from Europe where she lives in order to get it done. She works online and will need utilities for 2 months I reckon - will the bank close down his account on receipt of death cert? Will utilities be able to be paid by another person after the direct debits are cancelled?

His flat is housing association so we think we'll have 2 months before they start any proceedings for unpaid rent after the DD are cancelled, (we would pay the modest rent due but not sure we'd be acceptable as payeees)

Lastly he gave me his apple phone and laptop in his will. He wrote it into his instructions for the three of us and privately verbally told me of his plan. Its because he thinks I'm the least worse person to mind his digital legacy. He particularly doesn't want family to see it. Gawd knows what's on it. Anyway, family are keen to try to unlock to get photo archive. He also published two books and I guess the manuscripts are on there. He said passwords are in the paper folder with his will. Some passwords are there but not for phone and laptop. I've tried all the combos I can think of for 6 didgets on his phone but it's now making me wait an hour between tries. Any advice?

 

[Steel Icarus]

Dunno anything about this stuff - someone on here will - but I'm so sorry for your loss lovely x

 

[B.I.G]

TLDR; 1. anyone know how to get into someone's iPhone and mac book after their death.?

2. Can banks release all cash before probate if the estate is well under the threshold?

3. How accurate does a probate estimate have to be ?

4. What's your experience of utility companies after a person death?

My boyfriend died 2 weeks ago. I'm not the executor of his will but I have been tasked by him with some things surrounding his death

Myself, one of his sisters and one of his brothers have arranged his funeral. My boyfriend knew he was unwell over a long time and he saved 4k in a joint account with his brother which gives us cash flow for 2/3 funeral costs

We don't know how much he has in his current a/c and savings.

Its possible he has cash in a pension plan and he may get death in service benefit from local government pension but he owns no property so unlikely to be anywhere near the probate lower threshold

We spoke to his banks today about them paying invoice for the funeral direct to funeral directors before probate and they agreed in principle but wont confirm how much is in his bank account till they get an original copy of the death certificate

His sister has been given responsibility for sorting his things out so she has moved over from Europe where she lives in order to get it done. She works online and will need utilities for 2 months I reckon - will the bank close down his account on receipt of death cert? Will utilities be able to be paid by another person after the direct debits are cancelled?

His flat is housing association so we think we'll have 2 months before they start any proceedings for unpaid rent after the DD are cancelled, (we would pay the modest rent due but not sure we'd be acceptable as payeees)

Lastly he gave me his apple phone and laptop in his will. He wrote it into his instructions for the three of us and privately verbally told me of his plan. Its because he thinks I'm the least worse person to mind his digital legacy. He particularly doesn't want family to see it. Gawd knows what's on it. Anyway, family are keen to try to unlock to get photo archive. He also published two books and I guess the manuscripts are on there. He said passwords are in the paper folder with his will. Some passwords are there but not for phone and laptop. I've tried all the combos I can think of for 6 didgets on his phone but it's now making me wait an hour between tries. Any advice?

Is one of the passwords the iCloud password?

 

[Miss-Shelf]

Is one of the passwords the iCloud password?

Sadly not. One of them is his personal email but that was very sanitised already and no other passwords showed up in an email search

 

[weltweit]

Sorry to hear of your loss, but perhaps it it was expected it won't have the sting of an unexpected death.

All I know is that you will need a lot of copies of the death certificate, I think someone told me 8 could be useful as all sorts of people will need it.

Where in the world are you. I think in the UK there is a service where you can notify government once and they tell every one who needs to know in the Gov sphere.

I am afraid I have no idea how to get into iPhones and Apple lappys so can't help there.

 

[LDC]

Sorry about this.

I dealt with my mum's death here in the UK so have some experience of 3) and 4).

3) Not very, although if it's wildly off it might get challenged. Do you mean for inheritance tax though? I got estimates of house contents and it was wildly underestimated by the people that did it, which I got the impression was pretty standard.

4) Utilities gave me months of not paying, and just took my word for it with her death I think. I might have had to get a letter from solicitor or send the death certificate in to 1 or 2, can't recall now. But no problems with any.

Sorting it all out was much less hassle than I thought, even the car etc. I did get a solicitor to do the will and gathering all the money etc. but I did all the house clearing, day-to-day bills, funeral etc. The UK has a 'register once' service for deaths and that is pretty good and makes it much less paperwork. But do get a dozen-ish death certificates so you have spare as some people do insist on them to close things etc.

 

[B.I.G]

Sadly not. One of them is his personal email but that was very sanitised already and no other passwords showed up in an email search

I recommend you speak to apple support / take it to a store to see if there is any way to assist you.

However, I believe its only getting harder if not impossible to access an encrypted apple machine without the password.

 

[DaveCinzano]

In respect of bank accounts, when you advise them of the death they will likely freeze any accounts where they are the sole signatory - no money in, no money out.

When you get the death certificate you will then call the bereavement team at the bank, who will require information from the certificate. They may just take answers over the phone. They may ask for the certificate itself (so when you register the death and get the certificate, consider paying for additional copies as you may need to give it to multiple parties simultaneously).

With that out the way they will arrange to transfer any funds to the appropriate beneficiary. If there is no probate, they will likely take the word of the reporting party. The bank account(s) will then be 'closed' - the account number will no longer 'exist', and you will be given an identifying code in case later there is any need to discuss the account.

 

[marty21]

I can answer about the rent , the HA will charge rent until the tenancy ends (they get the keys back) seems harsh I know. But , they can only chase his estate for any arrears , so if there isn't much of an estate , they won't get paid. The arrears are pretty much written off , so I wouldn't use your own, or his family money to pay the rent , thats a low priority in these circumstances. Condolences for your loss.

 

[DaveCinzano]

His flat is housing association so we think we'll have 2 months before they start any proceedings for unpaid rent after the DD are cancelled, (we would pay the modest rent due but not sure we'd be acceptable as payeees)

The gist of it is, they can only accept rent from a tenant. That tenant has certain rights over the property which are not shared with others. Rent is payment in respect of those rights. A landlord cannot accept rent without acknowledging lawful tenancy.

Depending on tenancy type, there may be particular succession rights available to use in respect of taking on the tenancy.

On reporting the death of the tenant it can be possible to negotiate an occupation of the property under licence, in exchange for payment equal to the rent (but not itself rent). The particular length of this occupation is likely to be a brief, fixed period of time.

 

[mack]

Firstly, really sorry for your loss - hope in time you'll be able to process it properly - doing all this affairs stuff sometimes takes your mind off things, but can also piss you off.

Because of covid a lot of banks/utility companies have looked at their processes for dealing with bereavements so It's not probably as bad as It used to be.

As mentioned before get at least 5 extra copies of the DC, most places will accept the copies as proof, some will want the original and post it back to you.

We actually didn't inform the bank until last as we wanted to sort things out financially for my mum (who is no good with tech/online), it made things easier.

My dad bless him, did write down loads of random passwords and pin numbers for various things in a book and on some paperwork, it did take a while to get into everything.
Im sure you'll find what you need to access the phone and laptop sooner rather than later.

might be some helpful info here How to request access to a deceased family member’s Apple account

 

[Puddy_Tat]

Firstly, sorry to hear the news.

Citizens Advice have a page on the 'what to do' stuff here (this is specific to England, as some bits of law are subtly different round the UK - page does have links to the other 3 equivalents)

Where in the world are you. I think in the UK there is a service where you can notify government once and they tell every one who needs to know in the Gov sphere.

it's called 'tell us once' - more here.

Its possible he has cash in a pension plan and he may get death in service benefit from local government pension

yes, current local government pension scheme does have a death in service benefit - generally it's 3 x annual salary (this assumes he was still employed - if he had left employment but had deferred benefits in the scheme, there may still be something. presume you're in contact with his manager or HR or something - they should be able to advise you who to contact (some councils have banded together, and one council administers pensions for a few other councils.)

My knowledge of probate is a bit fuzzy, but don't think they will get that excited about valuations if it's well under inheritance tax thresholds. they might ask questions if the estate comes out just under a threshold.

 

[marty21]

TLDR; 1. anyone know how to get into someone's iPhone and mac book after their death.?

2. Can banks release all cash before probate if the estate is well under the threshold?

3. How accurate does a probate estimate have to be ?

4. What's your experience of utility companies after a person death?

My boyfriend died 2 weeks ago. I'm not the executor of his will but I have been tasked by him with some things surrounding his death

Myself, one of his sisters and one of his brothers have arranged his funeral. My boyfriend knew he was unwell over a long time and he saved 4k in a joint account with his brother which gives us cash flow for 2/3 funeral costs

We don't know how much he has in his current a/c and savings.

Its possible he has cash in a pension plan and he may get death in service benefit from local government pension but he owns no property so unlikely to be anywhere near the probate lower threshold

We spoke to his banks today about them paying invoice for the funeral direct to funeral directors before probate and they agreed in principle but wont confirm how much is in his bank account till they get an original copy of the death certificate

His sister has been given responsibility for sorting his things out so she has moved over from Europe where she lives in order to get it done. She works online and will need utilities for 2 months I reckon - will the bank close down his account on receipt of death cert? Will utilities be able to be paid by another person after the direct debits are cancelled?

His flat is housing association so we think we'll have 2 months before they start any proceedings for unpaid rent after the DD are cancelled, (we would pay the modest rent due but not sure we'd be acceptable as payeees)

Lastly he gave me his apple phone and laptop in his will. He wrote it into his instructions for the three of us and privately verbally told me of his plan. Its because he thinks I'm the least worse person to mind his digital legacy. He particularly doesn't want family to see it. Gawd knows what's on it. Anyway, family are keen to try to unlock to get photo archive. He also published two books and guess the manuscripts are on there. He said passwords are in the paper folder with his will. Some passwords are there but not for phone and laptop. I've tried all the combos I can think of for 6 didgets on his phone but it's now making me wait an hour between tries. Any advice?

I have death in service benefit from the council, it's around £80k btw in my council.

 

[Miss-Shelf]

Thanks everyone, I'll come back and read properly in the morning

 

[DaveCinzano]

Thanks everyone, I'll come back and read properly in the morning

Good luck and take it step by step

 

[two sheds]

sorry to hear that

would he have left the passwords written anywhere, back of a diary for example?

 

[izz]

Bless you Miss-Shelf, my heart goes out to you.

Apologies if I duplicate what other people have said here.

Re. getting into an iPad or similar, we had to get into my uncle's after his death, we knew he'd used his date of birth in 6 digits and tried DDMMYY BUT the iPad had actually stored this data as MMDDYY so once we tried that,. we were in.

Re. death in service, I was a civil servant and had I died there would definitely have been some money, if he was in local government there is a chance there would be, and I would recommend that whomever notified his work of his passing ask this question specifically. If there's money coming, it may take some while for this to happen as these things are never swift.

Personally I found utilities falling over themselves to make things easier when I was dealing with mother's death, they were very happy to take payments directly from me over the phone to cover any gap between direct debit payments stopping and us clearing the house. Mother lived in a council house and we had only a month to clear it, however this was because there was nobody living in it and they needed the stock, I would explain the situation over the phone, emphasising the need for someone to stay in the house to sort out his affairs and offer to pay up front, then if this acceptable, sending a confirmatory email/letter.

My probate estimate was inaccurate, by about 10% but as the amount was much less than the threshold for inheritance tax I haven't had any contact from HMRC about this at all.

Regarding releasing all cash from bank accounts, in my case the banks were very careful to ensure money was available for a funeral and very happy to pay the costs directly from mother's account. I doubt they'd release money to anyone not a named executor. If there's enough in his savings etc. I would consider leaving the joint account money as it is and having the whole amount paid by the bank but this is obviously you and his sibling's choice.

Again, bless you, my heart goes out to you. Loss is a cunt. If you'd like more personal support just PM me and I'll be happy to help as much as I can.

 

[Miss-Shelf]

Update
The three of us organising the funeral paid the additional costs and then got it back from the cash in his bank

Belatedly I got the passwords and ID for the phone and laptop. (Person tasked with sending the will forgot to send them earlier )

Now the phone is locked to owner becuase I made too many attempts to get in. I am anxious not to mess up opening up the laptop and signing in because I presume there us some two step verification magic going on with the phone as well.

If anyone has advice for me I'd be grateful

#notanappleuser

 

[A380]

Update
The three of us organising the funeral paid the additional costs and then got it back from the cash in his bank

Belatedly I got the passwords and ID for the phone and laptop. (Person tasked with sending the will forgot to send them earlier )

Now the phone is locked to owner becuase I made too many attempts to get in. I am anxious not to mess up opening up the laptop and signing in because I presume there us some two step verification magic going on with the phone as well.

If anyone has advice for me I'd be grateful

#notanappleuser

Apple do all sorts of good / bad things with encryption and two factor authentication. If it was me I'd make an appointment at one of their shops (can't bring myself to call them Genius Bars...) at a quietish time and take the devices, passwords and death certificates, wills and letters about the situation along and hope you get someone sympathetic.

If they can't or won't help try googling for a local private digital forensic service, though that might be a bit pricey.


So sorry for your loss.

 

[two sheds]

A neighbour's going through this, his main problem is that he has to contact a couple of dozen relatives, each in line for a small amount of money, but he doesn't know who they are.

 

[Miss-Shelf]

A neighbour's going through this, his main problem is that he has to contact a couple of dozen relatives, each in line for a small amount of money, but he doesn't know who they are.

It's truly a gift that keeps giving (death bureaucracy)

 

[A380]

A neighbour's going through this, his main problem is that he has to contact a couple of dozen relatives, each in line for a small amount of money, but he doesn't know who they are.

Once they get one hopefully the others will follow? If he can't find any himself then I think he'd be justified in using some of the estate money to retain a private investigator - google local ones. They are nothing, nothing, like the ones in the books but most regard finding people as bread and butter work...