please help, advice regarding joint accounts and probate

[Kentman455]

Good afternoon,

I'm hoping someone can help.

 

Several months ago my Dad passed away, he had been separated from our stepmother for around 2 years. Shortly after he passed away his bank account was emptied by his ex partner. i've since found out that although she told my father she would deal with removing her name from the joint account ( because he was in ill health ), she never did.

 

The money that was in the account can be proven to have only come from my father (following their separation) and was not contributed to by my stepmother.

 

i have been told by a solicitor that it is possible to recover the money from her ( once i had been granted probate ) as i can prove the money was not hers and have proof of intention to remove her name from the joint account.

 

Can anyone advise me what the next steps are please.

 

Also will the bank now allow me to view the account statements up to the date of my dad passing away now that i have the letter of representation, as i strongly suspect that my step mother had been dipping into the account before my fathers' death and i will need to know how much has been taken to try to get it back. 

Essentially everything has been taken and i have had to get a loan to pay for his funeral. Because she was still legally his spouse she has claimed everything she can ( pension etc ).

 

Thank you in advance for any help that can be given.

 

[honeybee13]

Hello, welcome to CAG. I'm sorry to hear about your father.

 

Can I just check please that you're saying you have Letters of Adminstration because there wasn't a will and that you are now your father's LPR [legal personal representative]?

 

Other people should be along to advise later.

 

Best, HB

[Kentman455]

Good afternoon Honeybee,

Thank you.

Sorry I should have written Grant of Probate not Letters of Administration. There was a will written, myself and my brother are executors and the only beneficiaries.