But doesn't POPLA cost the PPC money ?

Seems like a good opportunity to waste their time and funds.

On 11/03/2019 at 14:18, Feelingdownandout said:

 if i rent the property, can i leave it on the market to sell?  what is the minimum term that i can rent it out for?

If you are thinking of renting the entire house and living elsewhere, removing the tenants when the property is sold could end up being an expensive and drawn out affair involving courts & bailiffs. Also, many potential purchasers would be put off knowing tenants are in place, and it would certainly reduce the value of any offers.

Remaining in the house and taking in a lodger would ease your cash flow, would not impact on property value, and the lodger can be removed with as little as 24 hours notice.

17 hours ago, southerner said:

Incidentally, the abuse has all been emotional, not physical, so I don't think the police will be interested.

Most (all ?) police forces have a specialist domestic abuse team. They recognise that abuse can take many forms: Physical, financial, emotional. Try to get your friend to talk to the D.A. team and find out what sort of assistance they can provide.

4 hours ago, ericsbrother said:

in truth he isnt a lodger or a tenant so she can just change the locks when he is at the shops if she wishes but that would be a little mean. Usually a week to a month's notice would suffice.

I have been renting a spare room for a year or so now. Had a lodger, that for one reason or another, required the involvement of the police. Her licence to occupy was rescinded there and then, and locks changed the following day. Her belongings were collected a couple of days later by a neutral third party.

Whilst I would agree that up to a month's notice would be appropriate in most situations, when faced with abuse or threats, summary notice would be a reasonable response.

In my opinion, he isn't a tenant as he has shared use of the kitchen, bathroom, and possibly other areas of the house. If he had been paying rent, then then perhaps he could claim to be a lodger, but this wouldn't offer much protection.

Changing the locks whilst he is out and calling the police if he attempts to break in would be one way of getting him out. Certainly, if he is abusive and controlling, then the police should have been involved sooner.

Start looking for a new job. I'm afraid you stand a very good chance of losing your driving licence.

2 hours ago, anotherdebt said:

I have just turned 55 and desperately need a new car. It turns out I have a small pension fund of around £4000 which I was going to cash in.

If this is a defined benefit scheme, you should take some professional advice before cashing it in. Also be aware that you may well have to pay income tax on the amount you take out of the pot.

They do not get a choice in the matter. They can always get the solicitor to provide a certified copy of the will before sending the original off with the probate application.

Do you know who the executor is who has been named in the will ?

4 hours ago, lolo1 said:

If they ever write it off, they probably won't tell me as they don't want you to know they can't chase you.

They will probably sell the debt on to Phillips & Cohen who specialise in "deceased account management". P&C have a pretty grubby reputation when it comes to collecting on these types of debts.

1 hour ago, speedfreek said:

I can turn on caps lock if you like but you ain't listening are you!

No need to shout. The number of stickies in the Benefits forum is a subject that has already been raised behind the scenes.

1 hour ago, Surfer01 said:

I got that however the issue is that when you bring it up and click on a post to read which may be near the bottom, when you are finished and come out of the post you are taken back up to the top of the page.  You then have to scroll and try and remember where it was so that you can look at the following post!

I have gotten in to the habit of opening links in a new tab and when I'm done. close the tab. Whilst this may not work for mobile users, most modern browsers support tabbed browsing.

Philips and Cohen specialise in recovering debts from the deceased. Often resorting to stretching the truth as to who is responsible for repaying the debt and hounding the living.

The grant of probate gives you the power and authority to act as if the deceased was still living (in my opinion). If MBNA is not prepared to play ball, then complain to the ICO, and should P&C make contact, refuse to deal with them until such time as you have all the required information. P&C won't supply any data regarding the debt, but they may prod MBNA to do so.

You can certainly put in for a mandatory reconsideration. If they say "out of time", there have been more than one tribunal ruling knocking back the DWP time limits. You have solid grounds for a MR as the decision has been made without having any evidence to hand. Quite shocking that they should make a decision based on a single paragraph form a (poorly) qualified "health worker".

The information provided by the probate search gives the date of death, the date probate was granted, and a reference number should you wish to purchase a copy of the documents. It is an indicator that the estate is in the process of being liquidated, but won't give any information as to how long it will take before the funds are distributed.

Depending on how complex the estate is, it could be steeled within twelve months, or it could take a couple of years. As an example, my grandfather's estate took over thirty years before any funds were distributed. Long story, but it involved misappropriation of funds by the executors and questionable activities by one solicitor in the early days.

In your situation, all I can suggest is to make regular inquiries with the executor, but do bear in mind that he will charge the estate a sizable fee each time.

Thanks for the update. Thread title changed to reflect the outcome.

I think you mean executor rather than executioner. Assuming there was a will, otherwise it's administrator.

The status of executor or administrator would only be granted after a probate application has been made. If the estate is worth less than £5,000, there is no court fees to pay. For further information, see: https://www.gov.uk/wills-probate-inheritance

I have my doubts that Provident (or any other body) would respond without a letter of administration, so it may well be worth applying for probate.

From what you have said and from.me reading the rules on .gov website on party walls I cant see why you need a party wall agreement, unless your leaving bits of info out.

Some useful information:

It surprises many Building Owners that they must serve a notice on their neighbour even though the hole they plan to dig will be entirely on their own land. The reason of course is that excavating close to any structure carries a risk that the foundations to that structure will be compromised and movement will occur.

 

This type of work is covered by section 6 of the Act and can be divided in to two parts. Below I have given the relevant text from the act together with a sketch which I hope will clarify the description.

 

Section 6(1), where -

 

(a) a building owner proposes to excavate, or excavate for and erect a building or structure, within a distance of three metres measured horizontally from any part of a building or structure of an adjoining owner; and

 

(b) any part of the proposed excavation, building or structure will within those three metres extend to a lower level than the level of the bottom of the foundations of the building or structure of the adjoining owner.

 

 

The above quoted from: http://www.mypropertyguide.co.uk/articles/display/10105/are-my-proposed-works-covered-by-the-party-wall-act.htm

As the OP has a Victorian era building which will most likely have very shallow foundations, a party wall agreement should be in place before any new foundations are dug. If the neighbour is refusing to enter into an agreement or appoint a party wall surveyor, then the OP will probably need to go to court and get an injunction to put a stop to the planned works.

OP: Do you have legal expenses cover with your household insurance ?

If so, contact them as it will save a lot in litigation costs if structural problems surface in your property at a later date.

If the DWP have failed to provide all the data you requested, then a complaint to the ICO is in order. If they have included someone else's personal information, then this too should be reported to the ICO. It may also be worthwhile getting your local MP on board and see if he/she can bring pressure to bear on the DWP.

where could I find the forms she needs to fill out.

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/traffic-enforcement-centre-forms

As Unclebulgaria has pointed out, as the assessment process hasn't yet been completed, DWP can't give me the information because they don't have it yet and they appear to be incapable of telling Maximus to either send it to DWP or (more reasonably) send it to me direct.

The DWP will be the Data Controller, and Maximus, merely the "data processor". As such, the DWP will be entirely responsible for supplying data requested via a SAR. A formal complaint to the ICO would be in order, and copy it to your local MP (although most of them are pretty useless).

Have you been to the police about the harassment and videos ?

The videos could possibly fall withing the remit of the Information Commissioner's office and they may be interested in bringing a case of their own.

Within less than 2 weeks from the date of death I had quite a stroppy letter from DWP demanding immediate repayment of a sum about double what I had expected or alternatively providing detailed information on all of the estate's assets in a form to be returned within 7 days.

In this situation, I would respond with an equally terse letter pointing out that that it is highly insensitive to be making such demands so soon after death. Inform them that no debts will be paid until such time as an executor (or administrator) has been appointed and all assets have been accounted for. Follow this up with a second letter demanding a breakdown of the alleged debt along with a list of all repayments to date. Head this as a Subject Access Request and they are then bound by the GDPR rules.

Plus, Google the Tax Credit Code of practice (COP 26). Pages 12 - 16 will be of particular interest. It covers things like partner's leaving. Also mitigating factors such as illness, etc.

Always worth including a link just in case a search engine puts the wrong document at the top of the list. The one I came across is:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tax-credits-what-happens-if-youve-been-paid-too-much-cop26

Hopefully, the right one

Replaced with local.

How many of these debts are solely in her name, which are in the ex-husband's name, and what are in joint names ?

She should not be paying anything against debts that are in his name, and you are certainly not liable for any of them.