The council are also offering a grant relating to business premises, and rate payers who are receiving rate relief.

Paul.

Can someone advise on the corona virus grants offered by the government, to the self employed, as to if they count as income, and are taxable, or if they affect benefits.

Paul.

My son had a letter from the court today, saying that his fine had been reduced to £355.00, and he can pay over 10 months.

So a good result for him, and affordable.

I would like to say thank you, to everybody for their advice on this matter, it was much appreciated.

Paul.

We sent off a letter, to ask about whether the court, would look again at my son's case. 

We received a short reply, asking us to fill in a means tested form, which we did, and returned it to the court, with a recent bank, and credit card statement.

We received a reply, and the statements returned. We understood from the reply, that we would have to wait for the next hearing on the 14th of March.

After a few days, a summons arrived, dated the 8th of March, saying that the fine had not been paid, and that a hearing on the 26th of March would deal with it.

I rang the court, and they said it was a generic letter, and not to worry. They confirmed that they had received our paperwork, and would be presented to the court.

They asked if we wanted to attend or not, and said it would not affect the outcome. My son said that he would plead guilty to the original offence, and they made a note of that.

I have drafted a letter to send to the court, outlining most of what was said over the phone, as I didn't want to rely on just a phone call.

Does this sound right, or is my son, now being tried for not paying the fine, or the original offence?

Paul.

Many thanks for all the advice, my son has been asked to contact the court, so it may be good news.

Paul.

Thank you for replying, we have sent a signed for letter, asking for another look at the case. How would we know the difference, between an admin reply, or a magistrate's reply.

Paul.

He is self employed, but doesn't have much work at the moment, in fact i have just had to lend him some money.

Paul.

My son was stopped and prosecuted, for two defects on his car.

He was informed that he did not need to attend court, and if he choose not too, his offences would be dealt with, in his absence.

One offence was a defective tyre, and the other was jagged, plastic body work.

The paper work has come from the court, and i think that the fines are excessive.

£440 for each offence, £85 for costs, and £45 for something else.

Do these seem excessive, and if so can he appeal?

Paul

Just a thought but I am sure that I was executor for at least 30 days after dad died, after which my step mother visited the solicitor, with a will that her brother wrote, and seems to have been accepted. Would it be better to write to my dad's solicitor, asking them why they did not contact me in that time? As in reality I didn't do anything connected to being an executor, I mostly went along with my step brothers, as they had gone through this when their father died. Registering the death etc. I did notice when I spoke to my dad's solicitor that they seemed to speak about dad's will in the present tense, as if this makes any difference.

Paul

The wills that do not need probate, can they be viewed after a certain time? But do I have the time, or if I feel uneasy about this situation, do I need to act quickly? There seems to be an air of secrecy about this, if everything is above board what harm is there in my wish to see the will?

Paul.

What is the situation after probate?

Does probate happen in every will?

Perhaps I am being paranoid,

but I was told by my father that I was an executor,

my step mother said that after 30 days the solicitor called her in with her brother,

who I gather had written a will for her,

she claims that everything has been left to her.

I only have her word for that,

the solicitor never contacted me in the 30 days after my dad died,

and now this is my situation.

Is it unreasonable that I should want to view the will,

to know that my fathers wishes have been met?

Paul.

The whole estate was in joint ownership. Am I correct in assuming that if the executor will not allow me to view the will, then another solicitor would be able to allow me to do so, through litigation?

Paul.

Thank you for your advice, this is an upsetting time, especially after losing dad.

I find it odd that the solicitor would not engage me, any further than a stranger.

The will was my fathers after all.

I am going to speak to my sister, and possibly to my step mother's executor, whom I know.

I wouldn't say that we are close as a step family, but I wouldn't want to upset my sisters situation.

My step mother has said that we will all be looked after if something happens to her, but this seems vague to me.

I know that after 30 days passed, my step mother went back to the solicitors with her brother, who is a will writer, but she will not comment further on this.

Paul.

I have looked at this site, but my fathers details are not there.

A similar name came up but an earlier death date, so his may come up later.

Or do they all appear here?

Paul.

I have been to the solicitor who acted for my father, in drawing up his will

They say I am not an executor to the will,

contrary to what my father told me when he was alive.

They would not discuss the matter further,

now I am not sure how to proceed.

My step mother has said that after 30 days the will passed to her and she inherits everything. It is now four months since he died, so is there time limits on these things, or do I contact another solicitor.

I also have a sister who has an interest in this case.

Paul.

I am named as an executor, and in the will, as is one of her sons.

I am going to ask her about the will,

but I wanted to be clear on where I stood.

Someone said that there may be a time limit on my rights regarding the will, and I also wondered if my fathers wishes will stand for the life of my step mother, or could she change anything in the will, during her life time?

Paul.

My father passed away recently, leaving my stepmother living in the bungalow they owned.

My father made a will before his death, and I wondered if I have a right to view the will.

I have no doubt that my father wished his wife to occupy the residence for as long as she is able.

There are family on her side who may have a claim on the residence,

so I just wanted to be clear on my fathers wishes.

Is this reasonable?

Paul.

Many thanks again for all the advice. The house purchase has gone through. Interestingly, the firm of solicitors changed the person who was dealing with my son's case, and very soon it was sorted.

Paul.

Many thanks for all the advice, my son has just sent off more documents to replace those that didn't arrive, but which were signed for, so we'll see what happens. The house purchase is the important thing at the moment, being stressful at the best of times.

Regards Paul.

My son is in the process of buying a house, and was recommended a solicitor, who is based away some where.

My son has had to send some sensitive information to the solicitor, by post.

He has sent two lots of info by recorded delivery,

and on both occasions, the solicitor says he didn't receive them,

although they were signed for.

The solicitor seems incompetent, and is prolonging the purchase of the house,

and causing consternation for my son,

as he worries that the sale may fall through.

Is there any complaints system to go to, or does my son have to endure this lack of professionalism ?

Paul.

I wasn't sure where to post it.

Paul.

My father has given his grandson a sum of money, less than 10k to help him with the purchase of a house. The solicitor acting for my son, now wants his grandad to supply ID and to prove who he is, with a declaration, and a utility bill. Grandad is 84 and we don't want to stress him unnecessarily. Do we have to comply with the solicitor, or is he being pedantic?

Regards Paul.

The assets would be stock, tools, and goodwill. The premises are rented. I want to treat my son as best that I can, so I don't want top price, but I also don't want the revenue saying it was sold to cheaply.

Paul.

Sole trader, not VAT registered, not a LTD company, no shares, just a one man band. My son wants to take over, but can't afford to buy outright, so he would have to pay as he went along, which I am happy with. My concern is what the tax man may think of the arrangement, and whether I may be liable for any tax's.

Paul.

Is there any advice for selling a business to a family member, and avoiding any surprises from the tax man.

Paul.