Clive Hewett

My mother in law has recently died. It has come to light that my brother in law had been making personal use of her bank account over several years. This includes when she was incapacitated and in hospital and care homes. This spending amounts to several thousands of pounds per year. Would the spending that can be identified as being his and his alone (rather than a shared or ‘thank you for doing this for me’ purchase) count as gifting and what effect would that have on inheritance tax and the figures submitted for probate?