Its a mystery

A friend of a friend was recently left some money in a will by a distant elderly relation, not a vast amount but something not to be sniffed at.
His relation, who he did not see regularly lived on his own, in a terraced house and by all means lead a relatively simple life
He wasn't a business man and his house could have done with a bit/lot of TLC
Following probate he obtained a copy of the will/grant and was dumbfounded to find the the estate of the deceased was worth several millions.
He along with a few other beneficiaries received only a small percentage of this amount, to which he and they are extremely grateful.
The residue of the estate, in the 7 figures range, has apparently been left to charity, but he and they do not know which charity, apparently the solicitors will not tell them.
Furthermore there are indications the the deceased had connections from the north to the south of England, unknown to any members of his extended family.
Again the solicitors of the estate will not divulge where the value of the estate originated, ie monetary or property
None of the family beneficiaries are after, or expect any more money from the estate, they would just like to know what charities he left the money to, and what if any other properties he owned.
They would also like to try and unlock the secret life of their deceased relation.
They have tried for months to find out but without any success,.
Has anybody on here been in a similar situation and if so did you have any success.?

My first reaction is, the deceased would not have gone to the lengths that they evidently have done (to keep their affairs from some of the beneficiaries), unless they really didn't want them to know.

Perhaps just advise your friend to enjoy the mystery of it all?

(In answer to your question, I have no experience of this situation).

I thought wills were public documents?

If the deceased lived in England, and died after 1857,

https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate

Only use the .Gov.uk site, others are scammers.

Hire a private detective.

Andy

HERTS P&D said:

Hire a private detective.

Andy

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yes try these people: Herts P.D.

I did hire a private detective many years ago, he was brilliant.

Andy

HERTS P&D said:

I did hire a private detective many years ago, he was brilliant.

Andy

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Tell us more, back in the 70s my dad went awol and my mum hired a PD about a week later he had all his details. Usually ex coppers I reckon using their old contacts, thats how Shakespeare & Hathaway work

All I would say is that, he was a retired (30 years ) ex copper.

Andy

All wills have to be published and a copy can be obtained but I can’t remember where from. A google search will probably turn it up ......... or a solicitor who isn’t a bit dodgy!

JohnD said:

If the deceased lived in England, and died after 1857,

https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate

Only use the .Gov.uk site, others are scammers.

Click to expand...

Open JohnD's link ....it tells you you can order a copy of the probate and the will,
Are these solicitors the executors ? To me it seems strange that they won't divulge the information that is a matter of public Information ask them in writing why ?
I'd be very suspicious ...don't assume solicitors are honest ?

Get a copy of the grant probate and will without telling the solicitors and see what's going on.

The solicitors my not necessarily know the source of the estate, if they were never involved in its acquisition

The individual concerned asked me to pass his thanks for all the helpful responses and in particular Brigadiers comment which make sense.
For the record he has obtained all the copies from the probate office and from the Solicitors. The only copy held back by the solicitors was the Grant letter which shows the total value of the estate. The will shows individual beneficiaries and the amounts they will receive. There are some clauses in the will which refer to trustees and the residue which is to be held in trust. It is that difference between what is in the will and on the grant letter he was referring to.
He my friend wishes to say that he has no desire to employ a private investigator he just wanted to know was there a way he could find out the source of his relatives fortune