Letter from Link Financial Outsourcing re my deceased mum

[rosa47]

Hello I'm new here so I hope I am posting this in the correct place.

Just a quick background before I get to the letter.

 

My mother passed away in January 2010 and my dad very recently passed away March 2012.

I am in the process of getting a grant of probate as my dad has named me executor on a will.

 

Today I went to my parents house and there was a letter from Link Financial Outsourcing addressed to "The personal representative" of my mother.

The letter says:

We have been advised that Mrs XXXXXX has sadly passed away. Please accept our condolences at this time.

In order that we may correctly update our records would you please provide a copy of her death certificate. We would also request that details of Mrs. XXXXX Executor are forwarded to us in due course. If you have any queries about this letter please feel free to contact us on .......

 

I feel confused as it is my father who has passed away most recently and I am sure (although not entirely) that we let everyone know when my mother died two years ago.

I do believe that my parents had a few debts but after reading some of the things about Link outsourcing on here, I feel reluctant to contact them as I do not have any means to pay outstanding debts to them.

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thank you in advance.

R

[ims21]

Hi and welcome to CAG.

 

I'm sorry to hear of your situation but you will get get all the help you need here.

 

I have moved your thread to the debt collection forum where the guys will be happy to advise as soon as they are available

[rosa47]

Thanks so much for your VERY quick response!

 

I will keep an eye out on the debt collection forum.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Hello sorry to hear of your loss.

Link are just debt collectors they

have no powers or authority.

 

Do you have solicitor helping you withthis?

If not I would write to Link acknowledging

their letter but executor you require any

and all of their interest in your mothers estate

to be divulged immediatley together with details

of any claim they may make on the estate.

[citizenB]

I think they are probably too late for any debt collecting activities in respect of your Mother's estate. Hold fire for a short while and see what advice can be given.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Seems a strange coincidence that Link are

in touch with you regarding your mothers

estate so soon after the loss of your father.

[rosa47]

Hello Brigadier and Citizenb, thank you for your replies.

I do have a solicitor who is sorting out a grant of probate for me and is asking for any other outstanding debts which I am trying to find and sort out, all very confusing going through piles of paperwork etc.

I know that my parents had borrowed against their property and very little will be left after it is sold, and I hopefully will find out in the next few days what they owe on it, I have in the last couple of days sent a copy of the will and my fathers death certificate to the mortgage company.

I quite agree Brigadier that it is strange that Link are contacting me about my mothers death just three weeks after my dads.

I have a feeling that mum had something owing with a company called MBNB? or similar but a death cert was sent at the time.

The thing was my dad became very ill as soon as mum died and pretended it hadn't happened so I am not too sure what is in store for me.

I haven't worked since my mother became ill as I cared for her and then my dad until his recent death so am in no position to be chased and be able to pay anyone. Hence my reluctance to tell Link outsourcing that I am the executor.

[citizenB]

Rosa, you personally will not be responsible for any debts.. if there is money left in the estate after priorities have been paid.. then any other creditors will get pro rata amounts.

 

It is likely an MBNA account that Link are chasing - as Excecutor, you are entitled to receive information regarding the account - copy of the agreement, statement of account, copy of the Notice of Assignmen tin order to establish if what they are claiming is accurate and indeed if they have a right to claim anything.

 

It would also be interesting to find out if there was any PPI or charges on the account Link are purusuing.. because this can be reclaimed if it is discovered that it might have been mis sold.

 

It is also interesting that Link have suddenly crawled out of the woodwork.. they have had two years to do this.. !!

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Em ''MBNA' a credit card provider.

 

I would give the Link letter to the solicitor to deal with,

as CB says they are out of time here, if there was a solicitor

was involved after your mother died I would think any OS

debts would have been sorted.

It would not surprise me if the pratts at Link have got this

totally wrong.

[rosa47]

Thanks once again for the replies.

So if there isn't anything left from my parents estate (which I doubt there will be) what will people like Link do, surely they don't just give up?

Perhaps the best thing to do is just ignore them and not even tell the solicitor about them and just get the house sold?

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

They will have to, blood and stone principle

they after all are not priority creditors.

[ScarletPimpernel]

I would respond to any request for a death certificate with this:

 

Dear Sirs

 

I refer to your letter dated about my late mother, who died on (date).

 

A copy of the death certificate can be obtained from the (place where death was registered) Register Office upon payment of the statutory fee.

 

Yours etc.

[Undercover-Elsa]

Hello Rosa,

So sorry to hear of your bereavements, and I feel Link are well out of order in contacting you asking for the Death Certificate without even giving you details of the debt or proof of any right to demand information from relatives.

As shadow points out above, they can get a copy directly if required...why should you pay for it?

 

My gut reaction is to write back stating something on the lines of:

 

Dear Sirs,

I am concerned that you have seen fit to write to me 2 years after my mother's death, demanding personal documents and information without providing details or proof of what interest you have in my late mother's affairs.

As far as I am aware any creditors at the time of her death were supplied with Death Certificates and I have no knowledge that she had any involvement with your company. In any event, there was no significant "estate" as such to administer.

As I'm sure you are aware, Death Certificates are available directly from the Register Office upon payment of the Statutory Fee.

 

yours faithfully

 

 

Elsa x

[citizenB]

Nicely worded letter, Elsa - Thanks for looking in.

[Undercover-Elsa]

No problem

I detest these leeches who harrass grieving families!

[brokebutnotbeatn]

Hi Rosa, Undercover Elsa is something of a star. Nice letter. Send it and be done. x

[Undercover-Elsa]

Now I'm blushing!!!

[Bazooka Boo]

Leeches.....actually they are quite useful, so Parasites, thats all Link Farcical are, ruddy parasites....I can feel a storm brewing with this one, OFT local MP, press and media, the possibilities of hanging them out to dry are endless.....