Hidden Heir Hunter Fees

It is widely accepted that Heir Hunters charge fees that are in the form of a percentage of any inheritance that is secured on behalf of a beneficiary. Whether the beneficiary signs an agreement with an Heir Hunter for 5% or 40% fee it is clear to the beneficiary what they have signed up for…. or is it?

It is common for Heir Hunters to charge VAT on top of their fees and this should be outlined to a client at the start of the claim process. Legal services are often required to deal with the administration of an estate following a claim and Heir Hunters are often not disclosing this to clients.

A beneficiary recently contacted us to say that a firm charging a fee of 20% came back to them after making a successful claim asking for a further 2% + VAT to deal with the administration of the estate.

The claim process had not been explained to the beneficiary who felt under great pressure to sign a further agreement with the firm concerned. If this additional fee relates to legal services then it should not have been hidden and should have been outlined to the beneficiary from the outset.

When approached by Heir Hunters two simple questions to ask are whether the fee quoted is free of VAT charges and whether it includes legal fees to deal with estate administration.