My Father Died Without Leaving A Will

[rodeogirl]

Hello, I live in London but my father lived in chiang Mai for many years and would send me interesting posts from your forum and I was wondering if you could give me any advice . My father was marreid to a lovley Thai lady for 7 years before he died suddenly last November, to my knowldege he didnt leave a will .I know he had money in a bank account for his residentancy visa and my sister and I would like to how we can find out if the money is still in his bank account and if so how to we can access it, we have tried writing to and ringing the bank but they will not say wether he still his has account there or not, his wife speaks very little english so she has been unable to help . Does anyone have any advice that can help us, I would really appreciate it , I hate the thought of his money just sitting in a bank account when his wife has a serious medical condition and needs the money,

[cdnvic]

First thing your father's wife needs to do is get an attorney. Is she physically capable of getting around or is she in hospital due to her condition?

[Jingthing]

I misread the wife thing. Yes, she needs a lawyer and a death certificate. It sounds like you will not be claiming his assets and want his wife to claim his assets. A Thai lawyer will need to make a case in Thai court before a bank will budge. Its not a good thing if she doesn't know if it is a lot of money as if it it isn't, it might not be worth the legal fees. Why can't the wife find a bank book or statement? If there was no wife, children of a deceased foreigner can make a claim in Thai court, but I think they would need to travel to Thailand to do so.

Edited July 11, 2009 by Jingthing

[Escobar69]

he died in thailand?

[rodeogirl]

he died in thailand?

Thanks for replying ,Yes in Chiang Mai ,he died suddenly as I was unable to get to his funeral, I have never met his wife and she speaks very little english and when I have asked her on the phone if she has money she says no .she was having weekly kidney dialysis and my father used to pay for it. She may have obtained all his money and if she has then I am happy with that I just hate the thought of it just sitting in an account doing nothing. I would like to know if their is any way my sister and I can find out if his account is still has money in it and if so how e go about getting it out.

[rodeogirl]

First thing your father's wife needs to do is get an attorney. Is she physically capable of getting around or is she in hospital due to her condition?

To be honest I have no idea how she is now she was quite well last time I spoke to her but it is so difficult with the language barrier. She may well have got her self an attorney and have the money but she always says she has no money when we ask . Do you if she she automaticaly entitled to it as his wife or does it have to be shared with amy children ?

[Harcourt]

Hello, I live in London but my father lived in chiang Mai for many years and would send me interesting posts from your forum and I was wondering if you could give me any advice . My father was marreid to a lovley Thai lady for 7 years before he died suddenly last November, to my knowldege he didnt leave a will .I know he had money in a bank account for his residentancy visa and my sister and I would like to how we can find out if the money is still in his bank account and if so how to we can access it, we have tried writing to and ringing the bank but they will not say wether he still his has account there or not, his wife speaks very little english so she has been unable to help . Does anyone have any advice that can help us, I would really appreciate it , I hate the thought of his money just sitting in a bank account when his wife has a serious medical condition and needs the money,

Sorry for your loss.

If you just want to be sure that his wife can get the money, then there is no need for you and your sister to access it, especially since you are in London and the bank account and widow are in Thailand.

It is quite possible that every time you speak to her about money that she may feel a bit defensive and fear that you are trying to access the money for yourself.

She may even feign poor english and poor financial circumstances because of this fear....not that it matters if you just want to help her. You need to first allay her understandable fears.

To best assist the widow, just advise her as Jingthing has suggested.

Perhaps someone here could write a letter for you in Thai, or you could find a Thai speaker to speak for you, to communicate your goodwill and advice.

Goodluck.

[isanb]

why don't you go to the Thai Embassy, the may be able to help you ?

If they can't, you may find someone speaking Thai who may help you

when you call her.

Frankly speaking, i will be surprise if she did not have the money yet

because the Thai are not naive in matter of money.

I can not believe that she use to live 7 years with your father without

knowing in witch bank he put his money as i can not believe that

someone didn't tell her how to recover the money (assuming that they

are legally married).

Of course she will told you that she has no money when you ask but

be cautious.

Good luck

[Escobar69]

lol.

dont worry.

i am sure his wife took care of the account.

lol.

she may be telling yuo she has no money so you will give her some.

why not ask her about the account directly?

[Escobar69]

"Do you if she she automaticaly entitled to it as his wife or does it have to be shared with amy children ?"

good luck!

[Flatouthruthefog]

he died in thailand?

Thanks for replying ,Yes in Chiang Mai ,he died suddenly as I was unable to get to his funeral, I have never met his wife and she speaks very little english and when I have asked her on the phone if she has money she says no .she was having weekly kidney dialysis and my father used to pay for it. She may have obtained all his money and if she has then I am happy with that I just hate the thought of it just sitting in an account doing nothing. I would like to know if their is any way my sister and I can find out if his account is still has money in it and if so how e go about getting it out.

My condolences. As an English expat here I have some experience of Thai Embassies and Consulates around the world, the communication difficulties at your distance, and very recently of Wills, having just decided it's high time to make one here.

1. Anywhere in the world, you will find Thai Consulates more helpful (and straighter!) than Embassies. If you are in the UK, the Consulate in Hull has an especially good reputation. When I had a 'long distance romance' problem many years ago (unsuitable for a Consulate!), I did the alternative by phone and had a Thai friend in a UK Thai restaurant make the calls.

2. For a Thai or a foreigner to die intestate (no Will) in Thailand is MORE complex than in UK. In particular, banks will ONLY deal with Thai lawyers. By now the British Embassy in Bkk should have issued a death certificate to the widow. She must treat it like gold and take it to a good lawyer.

3. Because I admire what you are trying to do to help this lady (who may well be running dangerously low on funds - especially re the kidney problem) and these circs are special, I hope the Mods allow me to make the following personal recommendation. just PM me.

Good luck.

[TerryLH]

If money in the bank was used at immigration, they should have the info about bank and account number.

[toret]

Did not read the other post so this might have been mentioned already.

Sorry to be cynical, but are you sure she needs medical treatment?

It is not unheard of that women in this part of the world claim to have a medical condition in order to gain financial support from westerners, who might not think that someone would be untruthful about such things.

[Maizefarmer]

I trust the dialysis story is something you were aware of before your dad passed on? No issue on that - your Dad confirmed it before he passed on?

If you pm me the account number and bank name I'll come back to you within 24hrs or so with a balance.

Edited July 12, 2009 by Maizefarmer

[saintofsilence]

I trust the dialysis story is something you were aware of before your dad passed on? No issue on that - your Dad confirmed it before he passed on?

If you pm me the account number and bank name I'll come back to you within 24hrs or so with a balance.

What authorisation do you have to view another persons account balance ?

[F1fanatic]

Oh come on!!

I've read some duplicitous posts in my time, but this takes the biscuit - its sooo obvious the poster is trying to get their hands on any money that may be about!

They've clearly no time for the Thai wife (that they've never met and can't communicate with 'cos of the language barrier).

It would be interesting to know how old the husband was and how old the wife. If there was a large age gap I can guarantee the kids from the 'first wife' have absolutely no time for the new wife!

I think its fairly obvious though that the OP is not about to be truthful about this, or anything else.

[Scott]

Regardless of the truthfulness of the OP, it's best that the money situation get cleared up. If the father/husband had a sizeable account and it's sitting there, then it is worth it for them to get an attorney and see what they are entitled to. In most cases, I would guess that his wife is the main beneficiary and if he was retired, he probably had the amount necessary for visa renewal and it really wouldn't be worth fighting over.

In such a case, it's best that the amount be found out and the wife be pointed in the direction of getting the funds.

Most people with sizeable amounts of money would have it secured overseas and would be transferring in funds that they need.

Sorry for your loss and the best of luck to you.

[farangene]

Regardless of the truthfulness of the OP, it's best that the money situation get cleared up. If the father/husband had a sizeable account and it's sitting there, then it is worth it for them to get an attorney and see what they are entitled to. In most cases, I would guess that his wife is the main beneficiary and if he was retired, he probably had the amount necessary for visa renewal and it really wouldn't be worth fighting over.

In such a case, it's best that the amount be found out and the wife be pointed in the direction of getting the funds.

Most people with sizeable amounts of money would have it secured overseas and would be transferring in funds that they need.

Sorry for your loss and the best of luck to you.

I don't know about a foreigner's death in Thailand but a friend's Thai father died without a will. Law said that 50% of his estate went to the Thai wife and the other 50% was to be divided among the kids. The kids gave their money to the mom but that 50-50% split is what Thai law dictated 4-5 years ago. Agree that you should contact a lawyer if she is not cooperating or unable to handle it on her end.

I also thought that regular dialysis cost was covered by a national insurance plan. I could be wrong on that aspect.

[cdnvic]

I also thought that regular dialysis cost was covered by a national insurance plan. I could be wrong on that aspect.

Even so, it's difficult to earn a living when hooked to a machine several days a week.

[rodeogirl]

Oh come on!!

I've read some duplicitous posts in my time, but this takes the biscuit - its sooo obvious the poster is trying to get their hands on any money that may be about!

They've clearly no time for the Thai wife (that they've never met and can't communicate with 'cos of the language barrier).

It would be interesting to know how old the husband was and how old the wife. If there was a large age gap I can guarantee the kids from the 'first wife' have absolutely no time for the new wife!

I think its fairly obvious though that the OP is not about to be truthful about this, or anything else.

For your information I am not trying to get my hands on my father money as you put it, I am trying to find out if the money he had in his account for his residency visa is available for his widow or wether it has to go to probate like it does in the uk, my sister and I are more than happy for his wife to have this money our concern is this money is just sitting in an account doing nothing when she clearly needs it, My sister and I have lots of time for his wife (if i didnt care then i woulnt have made sure she got his english pension )she is very nice women whom my father was very fond of and we are grateful she made him so happy

[cdnvic]

Oh come on!!

I've read some duplicitous posts in my time, but this takes the biscuit - its sooo obvious the poster is trying to get their hands on any money that may be about!

They've clearly no time for the Thai wife (that they've never met and can't communicate with 'cos of the language barrier).

It would be interesting to know how old the husband was and how old the wife. If there was a large age gap I can guarantee the kids from the 'first wife' have absolutely no time for the new wife!

I think its fairly obvious though that the OP is not about to be truthful about this, or anything else.

For your information I am not trying to get my hands on my father money as you put it, I am trying to find out if the money he had in his account for his residency visa is available for his widow or wether it has to go to probate like it does in the uk, my sister and I are more than happy for his wife to have this money our concern is this money is just sitting in an account doing nothing when she clearly needs it, My sister and I have lots of time for his wife (if i didnt care then i woulnt have made sure she got his english pension )she is very nice women whom my father was very fond of and we are grateful she made him so happy

There's a lot of angry, bitter cynics here. pay them no mind, nobody else does.

[isanb]

(if i didnt care then i woulnt have made sure she got his english pension )

Sorry but i don't understand, you are able to do that and you can not check if there is still some money in your father account.

Your father pension use to go in his account no ? so you had to contact his bank to change the receiver !!!Otherwise how can she access to the money

and why the wife of your father claim that she has no money but she got his english pension ?

[Master Chief]

Contact the UK embassy in Bangkok.

They deal with this kind of matters daily.

MC

British Embassy

14 Wireless Road

Lumpini, Pathumwan

Bangkok 10330

Bangkok

Telephone: +66 (0) 2 305 8333

Fax:+66 (0) 2 255 9278

Office hours (Local time):

Mon-Thurs: 08:00-12:00 / 12:45-16:30

Fri: 08:00-13:00

[Mrjlh]

Rodeogirl, Just ignor many of the posters here and take their comments with a "grain of salt". As you can see , many have nothing else productive to do, other than to flame, ridicule and insult people. Others have given you some fair advice. It's a long process but as it was already said, start with your own Embassy and work through them. But the most likely scenario will be all funds and property will go to his Thai wife.

Sorry for your loss.

[bellste]

I also thought that regular dialysis cost was covered by a national insurance plan. I could be wrong on that aspect.

Even so, it's difficult to earn a living when hooked to a machine several days a week.

She can just take the marriage papers, and the papers that her husband has died, and she can go to the bank and see how much money there is.

The family will fix this for here, within a week, don't worry. I have been married here for five years, so I know. It's noe problem for her to get all the money. 

Edited November 24, 2009 by bellste

[richardjm65]

1) Re finding out about the balance in his Thai bank acc, I would think that bellste is probably right in suggesting that the wife takes the marriage papers and death certificate to the bank.

2) You also need to find out if his Thai account was being topped up from (possibly) a UK or offshore bank into which his state pension and any private pensions (if applicable) he might have been entitled to, were being paid, since he may not have thought it wise to transfer all of his cash assets and pensions to Thailand. So, did he have UK/offshore accounts and would you be able to identify them?

3) If he was receiving a state pension, and the marriage was legal, she should be entitled to a bereavement payment of 2,000pds stg.

4) If she is between age 45-60 she may also be entitled to 52 weeks of bereavement benefit, the amount being dependent upon the number of NI payments he made and her age at the date of his death.

5) For items 3 & 4 she has to complete a 24 page Bereavement Claim Form available from The Pension Service, Tyneview Park, IPC BB, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE98 1BA England. You can also email them or check their website.

6) This takes time and certain original documents, but she should eventually be issued with a NI number of her own.

7) If that all works as it should, she should then be entitled to a state pension of her own when she reaches age 66.

8) It's quite possible that he kept a UK/offshore bank account and that might be checked for you by the Pension Service if you are able to provide proof of your identity and provide his NI reference.

I know this does not help much re the local Thai bank acc, but it may help you to resolve what, if anything, remains in his UK/offshore account(s)

[Arkady]

Are you sure that they registered the marriage? If not, she is not entitled to anything from his estate but you are. In fact, even if they were married Thai inheritance law would dictate that a portion of the estate would go to the offspring, whether it was all willed to the spouse or not. In Thailand just having a marriage ceremony blessed by buddhist monks is good enough for more than half the population and they never register their marriages and are not considered legally married by the government.

Like other posters I would think there is a high degree probability that she has already got access to any assets your father may have had in Thailand, whatever the legal status of the relationship. I would also think that, since she doesn't know you and can't speak much English, she would assume that your questions are directed towards getting the funds yourself and anyway she is not legally entitled to the entire estate, even if she has a marriage certificate. So she would be right to be wary. On the other hand, she might hope that you will send her some money to help with her medical expenses or even support her.

I am going to suggest something that I think is realistic, even if it might sound callous. Unless you think you father had a large sum of money sitting in the bank and you want to travel to Thailand to sort things out on behalf of the widow and are willing to consider possible requests from for financial assistance over and above this, I would think you are better off not getting too involved in what could end up a very confusing situation for you. Get an email address for her and send her an email that she can get translated by some one saying you are happy to help in any way you can, if she needs any help in getting access to your father's bank account in Thailand that you want her to have and leave it at that.

You didn't mention whether your father had a house or other assets in the UK. If so, do you want to help the widow inherit them? Unlike Thailand, English law would give the entire estate to the spouse in the case of intestacy, if they were legally married, and I think a common law wife also has a sporting chance of getting something through the courts.

[MrRichard2009]

LOL ..... Boy when free money is up for grabs it sure gets people going, don't it ! .... and I don't mean the OP or the wife. I know someone that left 150 Acres and a house to 10 kids just because he knew they would argue about it forever ! Sure enough 15 years later the land and house just sit there, just as he suspected.

[caf]

How are you so sure he did not leave a will? You said she spoke little english.

[MSingh]

Contact the UK embassy in Bangkok.

They deal with this kind of matters daily.

MC

British Embassy

14 Wireless Road

Lumpini, Pathumwan

Bangkok 10330

Bangkok

Telephone: +66 (0) 2 305 8333

Fax:+66 (0) 2 255 9278

Office hours (Local time):

Mon-Thurs: 08:00-12:00 / 12:45-16:30

Fri: 08:00-13:00

Can't believe it took 23 Posts for someone to say that..