Letter from Title Research - Scam or Genuine?

Transform_IT · 5 Jul 2015 at 19:47

Hi guys,

On Thursday my mother received a letter from Title Research in Bath, UK.

Here is a link to their website: http://www.titleresearch.com/

Basically the letter stated they have been trying to track her down as a distant relative of hers has passed away. Supposedly there is money just sat there doing nothing and she is the person who will inherit it. They claim the deceased relative is a cousin of my Nan's (my mothers, mothers cousin). They included the full name which is the same maiden name as my Nan and they also included my Nan's full name... We can't ask my Nan if this was her cousin as she has sadly passed as well.

The letter was left open for my mum to contact Title Research. She attempted to phone them Saturday but they are close at weekends, and their normal hours are Mon-Fri.

Obviously my mum is a little dubious and so am I, but after googling the company I can't seem to find anything negative or positive about Title Research. The biggest clue is when she phones tomorrow, if they ask her for any money or bank details then steer well clear and ignore any future correspondence.

All I am wondering is if anyone else has had any experiences similar or with this company and what was the outcome?

Thanks,

T_IT

Mitzy · 5 Jul 2015 at 19:49

Yes, money upfront is a no no. If they say they'll take a cut of money paid out then that's legit usually (I think).

Ive watched a TV show about a company that does this and they take their cut at the end.

lude1962 · 5 Jul 2015 at 19:51

they seem legit enough

TITLE RESEARCH LIMITED
KINGS COURT
PARSONAGE LANE
BATH
BA1 1ER
Web: www.titleresearch.com
Classification:

Other professional, scientific and technical activities not elsewhere classified
Legal Information
Company Registration No.:
01115250
Incorporation Date:
24 May 1973 (42 Years old)
Financial Year End:
31 Dec
Capital:
£100,000.00 on 5 Jan 2015

koolpc · 5 Jul 2015 at 19:52

https://www.companiesintheuk.co.uk/ltd/title-research

dowie · 5 Jul 2015 at 19:55

If they've already given you the name of the individual then what is your incentive to now use them and pay them a hefty % fee? Surely you've got the information you need from them for free.

robfosters · 5 Jul 2015 at 19:58

Mitzy said:
Yes, money upfront is a no no. If they say they'll take a cut of money paid out then that's legit usually (I think).

Ive watched a TV show about a company that does this and they take their cut at the end.

Was it this lot? They was always on Heir Hunters on BBC1.

http://www.fraserandfraser.co.uk/

dowie · 5 Jul 2015 at 19:59

FYI these sorts of firms are often legit and will earn money from you signing a contract giving them a % of the inheritance as a sort of finders fee. It would seem strange though to tell you the details as surely you can now look up the person and confirm if he/she died intestate and or make your own arrangements to claim.

robfosters · 5 Jul 2015 at 20:08

dowie said:
FYI these sorts of firms are often legit and will earn money from you signing a contract giving them a % of the inheritance as a sort of finders fee. It would seem strange though to tell you the details as surely you can now look up the person and confirm if he/she died intestate and or make your own arrangements to claim.

They told them that on the TV show too. They have to give you the details and let you make the choice. They can't withhold what they know unless you agree to pay them. It's often a race between firms to track the heirs down first. Some will even undercut others and offer to do the business for a lower fee than their rivals. You could go your own way, but it's a lot of work.

Mitzy · 5 Jul 2015 at 20:16

robfosters said:
Was it this lot? They was always on Heir Hunters on BBC1.

http://www.fraserandfraser.co.uk/

Yes, that's the job

kitfit1 · 5 Jul 2015 at 20:29

dowie said:
FYI these sorts of firms are often legit and will earn money from you signing a contract giving them a % of the inheritance as a sort of finders fee. It would seem strange though to tell you the details as surely you can now look up the person and confirm if he/she died intestate and or make your own arrangements to claim.

They earn there cut from doing all the donkey work to enable a claim to go ahead, when they have found a legitimate heir. Don't forget, the treasury will not release any money unless the claimant has 100% proof they are a legitimate heir. So yes, you could now make a claim yourself..........................but it's not you that has the proof the Treasury needs before they release any money........................it's the "Heir hunting company" that has it.
So if you are prepared to do all the work needed to obtain that proof, then you can claim. But don't forget, neither you or the "Heir hunting company" know how much any estate that the Treasury releases is worth, until you put in a successful claim. In my opinion, they would have put an heir in a position to make a claim on money they would otherwise have known nothing about and are worth every penny of the small fee they charge.

Greebo · 5 Jul 2015 at 20:35

kitfit1 said:
They earn there cut from doing all the donkey work to enable a claim to go ahead, when they have found a legitimate heir. Don't forget, the treasury will not release any money unless the claimant has 100% proof they are a legitimate heir. So yes, you could now make a claim yourself..........................but it's not you that has the proof the Treasury needs before they release any money........................it's the "Heir hunting company" that has it.
So if you are prepared to do all the work needed to obtain that proof, then you can claim. But don't forget, neither you or the "Heir hunting company" know how much any estate that the Treasury releases is worth, until you put in a successful claim. In my opinion, they would have put an heir in a position to make a claim on money they would otherwise have known nothing about and are worth every penny of the small fee they charge.

On heir hunters they always know how much the estate is worth. What they don't know is how many legit claimants are alive or will be found.

dowie · 5 Jul 2015 at 20:37

kitfit1 said:
They earn there cut from doing all the donkey work to enable a claim to go ahead, when they have found a legitimate heir. Don't forget, the treasury will not release any money unless the claimant has 100% proof they are a legitimate heir. So yes, you could now make a claim yourself..........................but it's not you that has the proof the Treasury needs before they release any money........................it's the "Heir hunting company" that has it.
So if you are prepared to do all the work needed to obtain that proof, then you can claim. But don't forget, neither you or the "Heir hunting company" know how much any estate that the Treasury releases is worth, until you put in a successful claim. In my opinion, they would have put an heir in a position to make a claim on money they would otherwise have known nothing about and are worth every penny of the small fee they charge.

with the records available these days that shouldn't, in theory, take too long - we're talking about going back two generations, checking for other cousins and working down the tree

kitfit1 · 5 Jul 2015 at 20:45

Greebo said:
On heir hunters they always know how much the estate is worth. What they don't know is how many legit claimants are alive or will be found.

Actually you are wrong, they never know how much an estate is worth. They can have a very good guess, but the treasury does not release how much any estate is worth.

kitfit1 · 5 Jul 2015 at 20:49

dowie said:
with the records available these days that shouldn't, in theory, take too long - we're talking about going back two generations, checking for other cousins and working down the tree

Your probably correct. But to make a successful claim you have to be able to prove 100% that you are the rightful heir/heirs. From watching the programs on TV, it's no where near as easy as we might think.

dowie · 5 Jul 2015 at 20:54

well if it is the cousin of a grandparent you're not likely the only one - so you'll have to track down the others too

Greebo · 5 Jul 2015 at 21:01

kitfit1 said:
Actually you are wrong, they never know how much an estate is worth. They can have a very good guess, but the treasury does not release how much any estate is worth.

I'm sure they do on TV. They get the list through and say things we need to jump on this on its one million quid or this one is 50k.

And when they go to sign the relatives up they tell them it's 50k and they have found 10 living relatives and you are all getting 5k each etc.

Or is that all made up for TV?

And isn't there a list of unclaimed estates you can aces wit,h values? The TV program lists them at the end of every show with value?

dowie · 5 Jul 2015 at 21:05

Greebo said:
And isn't there a list of unclaimed estates you can aces wit,h values? The TV program lists them at the end of every show with value?

you can find a list here

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/unclaimed-estates-list

these are small businesses employing people to do some basic searches, go through a set process and claim a %

it hardly seems like rocket science so I'm not quite sure why you'd need to go along with signing up to hand over a % unless it was negligible - it shouldn't be too hard to replicate what the firm does by yourself

PapaLazaru · 5 Jul 2015 at 21:11

They are a legitimate company so she should no worry.

kitfit1 · 5 Jul 2015 at 21:24

Greebo said:
I'm sure they do on TV. They get the list through and say things we need to jump on this on its one million quid or this one is 50k.

And when they go to sign the relatives up they tell them it's 50k and they have found 10 living relatives and you are all getting 5k each etc.

Or is that all made up for TV?

And isn't there a list of unclaimed estates you can aces wit,h values? The TV program lists them at the end of every show with value?

Dowie has provided us with a link to the latest "list". If you download it you will see that it does not provide any info on how much an estate is worth.
This is the same list that the "heir hunters" use every month. What they do is very basic research to establish in there own minds how much each estate "might" be worth. The then decide which ones could be worth chasing up.
When we see it on TV, the case would have been dealt with ages ago, so of course by the time the program goes to air they know how much an estate is worth.

footman · 5 Jul 2015 at 21:27

My wife and her siblings have just been contacted like this. The researcher concerned was asking for 25% of the amount finally received. Rather tongue in cheek my brother in law has negotiated a sliding scale reduction!
They all realise they have nothing to lose by going along with this, could be interesting.