Losing a loved one is emotionally very distressing and the last thing you want is additional pressure, whether it be in relation to financial matters or the actual organisation of how to move forward. We can help you with all of this.

If the deceased had assets and left a will the executor will need to obtain a Grant of Probate to the estate. He or she can do that themselves if they have the time, knowledge and feel able to do so. If the deceased had assets but did not leave a will then a Grant of Letters of Administration will be needed. In some cases, it is possible to proceed without a Grant provided the state is small. Please call us to discuss this 01926 484488. We give 20 minutes free telephone advice without obligation.

Will Inheritance Tax need to be paid? Inheritance Tax is a tax on the estate (the property, money and possessions) of someone who’s died. There’s normally no Inheritance Tax to pay if either the value of the estate is below the £325,000 threshold or everything above the £325,000 threshold is left to a spouse, civil partner, a charity or a community amateur sports club. You may still need to report the estate’s value even if it’s below the threshold. If the deceased gives away the home to the children (including adopted, foster or stepchildren) or grandchildren the threshold increases to £500000. If the deceased was married or in a civil partnership and the estate is worth less than the threshold, any unused threshold can be added to your partner’s threshold.

The standard Inheritance Tax rate is 40%. It’s only charged on the part of the estate that’s above the threshold. For example, an estate is worth £500,000 and the tax-free threshold is £325,000. The Inheritance Tax charged will be 40% of £175,000 (£500,000 minus £325,000). The estate can pay Inheritance Tax at a reduced rate of 36% on some assets if the deceased has left 10% or more of the ‘net value’ to charity in his or her will. (The net value is the estate’s total value minus any debts.) Some gifts given away during the deceased’s lifetime may be taxed after death. Depending on when the gift was made, ‘taper relief’ might mean the Inheritance Tax charged on the gift is less than 40%. Other reliefs, such as Business Relief, allow some assets to be passed on free of Inheritance Tax or with a reduced bill. Funds from the estate are generally used to pay Inheritance Tax to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

If the executor wants some help in obtaining the grant of probate or letters of administration for a small estate (under £325000 and no more than 5 assets) we offer an extraction only service.

We will:

· quantify the estate

· advise generally as to payment of Inheritance tax

· submit the application to the probate registry and obtain the grant

· pass the original grant and 2 copies to you so that you can cash in the assets and distribute

· this does not include advice on income tax nor capital gains tax

 

We charge £1500.00 plus vat at 20% £300.00 totalling £1800.00 for this service. In addition, there will be a Court fee payable of £273 and £1.50 for each of the copies of the Grant.

 

If you would prefer us to deal with the whole estate, then we will:

· Meet with you to advise you generally on process

· obtain details of the assets and liabilities at date of death

· obtain formal valuations of assets

· prepare income tax returns

· prepare the IHT 400 tax return

· deal with payment of any Inheritance tax due

· Submit the probate application

· Obtain the grant

· Collect in the cash balances from asset holders

· Pay any debts due from the estate and the costs of the administration

· deal with any inquiries from HMRC

· pay cash legacies to the beneficiaries

· transfer property

· sell or transfer shares or other assets to the beneficiaries

· prepare estate accounts

· account to HMRC for income tax and capital gains

· make final distribution to the appropriate beneficiaries

Our costs for doing this are:

In a straightforward estate we would charge the extraction fee of £1500 pounds plus vat at 20% £300 pounds totalling £1800. There will also be a court fee payable of £273 and £1.50 for each

of the copies of the grant. In addition, we would charge 2% of the gross value of the estate for Inheritance tax purposes. Occasionally complications may arise which are outside of our control and which are deemed “non standard.” This could mean that our fees would be higher but we would discuss this with you at the time. This is rare and, for example, would arise if there are difficulties with the deceased’s tax position, if there are foreign assets or if there is a family dispute and the matter becomes contested. If that arises it will mean that the matter becomes litigious and subject to a different set of costs. Rest assured, we will explain fully the costs that are likely to be incurred if this arises.

Please note that our charges set out above do not include:

preparing the deceased tax return to the date of death

advising the beneficiaries in relation to potential deeds of variation and or liability to inheritance tax or capital gains tax

carrying out the conveyancing on the sale of any house or other property dealing with the first registration of property

preparing any trust tax returns where the deceased was a beneficiary or a trustee acting in any litigation that arises under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act 1975 advising in relation to a business or farm in which the deceased had an interest

advising in relation to foreign assets

financial advice on whether to sell or transfer assets or investments

fees on statutory advertisements which we may advise you place to avoid unexpected claims from unknown creditors. These may cost between £150 and £300 including vat

Land Registry fees which may be incurred in obtaining copies of the register of title to a property held by the deceased or making a registration amendment

You will find details of our team set out in the “about us” tab. At the time of you instructing us, a member of our staff will be allocated to deal with your matter. All solicitors and trainee solicitors within the practise are supervised by Carol Sketchley, our principal and a solicitor having in excess of 35 years’ qualified experience.

 

You may also find the following notes helpful –

What to do when someone dies: a client guide.

Within a few days after a death, someone needs to:

· Make sure that the home and possessions of the person who has died are secure.

· Register the death.

· Start arranging the funeral.

You will find guidance on these matters in this note. It also has answers to questions that people often ask after a death, such as:

· Where can we get money to pay for the funeral?

· Can I still use the joint account I had with the person who has died?

· How can we pay bills without access to the person’s bank account?

· What happens if the death is reported to the coroner?

· Who should we tell about the death?

· What happens if there is no will?

· Do we need a solicitor?

· What should we look for when going through the papers of the person who has died?

If a word is in bold when it is first used in this note, then its meaning is given at the end.

Who does what?

The family and friends of the person who has died can usually deal with most of the practical things that need doing immediately after a death. Solicitors normally get involved a little later, when the personal representatives ask for their advice about the estate. If there is no family member or friend to deal with the practical matters, then solicitors can help with some or all of these too, but they will charge for this.

What are the priorities?

The things that have to be done immediately after a death can be done in the order in which they appear in this note but this is just a suggested order. It is not inflexible and in particular cases it may not be possible to follow it rigidly.

Security and insurance for the property of the person who has died

You can skip this part of the note and go straight to the section below on registering the death if the person who has died lived in a residential or nursing home and no longer had a private home.

Are the home and possessions safe?

You need to read this section only if the person who has died lived alone in a private home. Otherwise, go straight to the section below on insurance.

If the person who has died lived alone, someone should go to their home on the day of the death. Take the security precautions that you would take when leaving your own home empty for a while, such as locking all doors and windows, stopping deliveries of papers and milk and moving valuable items so that passers-by cannot easily see them.

Everything that is in the home of the person who has died should remain there. This makes it easy to arrange for all the person’s property to be valued. (It has to be valued for inheritance tax purposes.) If there are very valuable items and you believe they are not adequately insured, consider moving them to a more secure place but consult the executors or close relatives of the person who has died or the person’s solicitors before you do this.

If you know that the person who has died had a gun licence and kept firearms at the property, report the death to the police so that they can make arrangements for the guns to be kept safely. The British Association for Shooting and Conservation has guidance on dealing with firearms when someone dies (see British Association for Shooting and Conservation: Bereavement and unlicensed firearms).

If the person had a pet, make temporary arrangements for it to be looked after by family or friends or through an animal rescue charity.

Insurance

On your first visit to the home of the person who has died, look for papers relating to the insurance of the property and its contents, even if you do not have time to look for other important papers at this stage. Then ring the insurers, tell them about the death and make sure that there is adequate home and contents cover in place. Keep a note of your conversation with the insurers and put it with the papers relating to the insurance. Hand all these papers over to the executors or their solicitors as soon as possible.

Registering the death

When someone dies, a doctor issues a medical certificate which states the cause of death. The death then needs to be recorded formally on the register for births, deaths and marriages. See the section below on deaths reported to the coroner and inquests for what happens if the doctor is uncertain about the cause of death.

When to register the death

A death must be registered within five days after the date of the death.

Who can register the death?

If the death was in hospital or in a private home (including a nursing or residential home), the following people can register the death:

· A relative.

· Someone who was present at the death but who is not a relative.

· Someone representing the “occupier” of the building where the death occurred (for example, the warden of a block of sheltered flats, the manager of a residential home).

· An official from the hospital.

· Anyone who has taken responsibility for arranging the funeral.

If the death was not in a public building or a private home, the following people can register it:

· A relative.

· Anyone present at the death.

· Anyone who has taken responsibility for arranging the funeral.

A relative should, if possible, register the death but the registrar allows non-relatives if no relative is available.

Where is the register office?

The death must be registered at the register office for births, deaths, marriages and civil partnerships for the district where the person died. If you do not know where this is, contact the local authority or visit its website or the GOV.UK website listed in the Further help section at the end of this note.

Ring the register office first to find out if it has an appointment system.

What to take to the register office

Whoever registers the death should take to the register office:

· The medical certificate from the doctor.

· The following information:

· date of death;

· place of death;

· full name of the person who has died;

· any former names;

· occupation;

· last address;

· name, date of birth and occupation of the person’s spouse (including a same-sex spouse for marriages on or after 13 March 2014) or civil partner (whether living or dead); and

· information about any state benefits the person was receiving.

Where to find the information you need

If you do not know all the details about the person who has died that you need for the registrar, you should be able to find them in their birth certificate, marriage or civil partnership certificate and state pension or allowance book.

Death certificates

The registrar issues an official copy of the register, called a certified copy death certificate, after the person registering the death signs the register.

You can obtain any number of certified copy death certificates. You have to pay for them; the price varies from one local authority to another. You can claim back the cost from the estate in due course. You need several copy certificates to send out when giving notice of the death to banks, insurance companies and so on. You can estimate how many to buy if you know roughly what the person who has died owned. For example, if the person had three bank accounts with three different banks and two share holdings with different companies, it is best to have five copy certificates, one for each separate institution. You will also need a copy for the person’s pension provider and it is sensible to get one or two spare copies while you are at the register office, since it is less convenient to order additional copies later.

Certificate for burial or cremation

The registrar also issues a certificate for burial or cremation. Give this to the funeral director who is making the funeral arrangements.

Form relating to social security benefits

The registrar will give you a form (form BD8) to complete. This is used to tell the DWP Bereavement Service of the death so that it can deal with the pensions and benefits arrangements of the person who has died. You can complete this form yourself or ask either the personal representatives or their solicitors to complete it and send it to the DWP.

If your local council offers the DWP’s “Tell us once” service, you can use that to deal with the deceased’s pension and benefits (see the section below “Tell us once” service).

“Tell us once” service

A number of local councils offer the DWP’s “Tell us once” service which is a way of letting a number of government departments know that someone has died by just making one contact. If this is available in your area, the registrar will either use the service for you or give you a unique service reference number so that you can use the service over the telephone or online. The service can be used to contact the government departments that deal with the deceased person’s benefits, state pension, tax, passport and driving licence. The web address for this service is in the section Further help at the end of this note.

What if the death is reported to the coroner?

If the death is reported to the coroner and the coroner is satisfied that the death is natural, then the coroner notifies the registrar and the death is registered in the usual way. However, if the coroner decides that an inquest is necessary, the registrar cannot issue a death certificate or a certificate for cremation (see the section below Deaths reported to the coroner and inquests).

Deaths reported to the coroner and inquests

Where it is not clear how a person died, their death is reported to the coroner, sometimes by the police but usually by the doctor who was called when the person died.

When a death is reported to the coroner, the coroner usually arranges for a post mortem. This normally establishes the cause of death. If the death is from natural causes, it can be registered and the funeral can go ahead. There is an inquest only if the cause of death is in doubt, even after the post mortem, or the post mortem shows that death was not from natural causes. Even if there is to be an inquest, the coroner usually allows the funeral to be held after the post mortem.

After the inquest, the coroner confirms the cause of death to the registrar who will register the death and then can issue a death certificate.

If it is necessary to provide proof of the death before the inquest has concluded (for example, when contacting organisations holding the deceased’s bank accounts or pensions), the coroner can issue a certificate of the fact of death (also known as an interim death certificate). This can also be used to apply for a grant of representation if the applicant is making a personal grant application rather than through their solicitor.

Is there a will?

It is not essential to find the will before the funeral. However, it is best to find it (or at least a copy) as soon as possible after the death because:

· The person who has died may have said in the will what kind of funeral they wanted (see the section below What kind of funeral did the person who has died want?).

· The administration of the estate goes more smoothly if the executors are involved from the outset (see the section below Telling the executors about the death).

People who get solicitors to make their wills for them often keep a copy of the will with their important papers. The original is usually kept by the solicitors’ firm: the address and phone number of the firm is often on the cover of the copy will.

If you cannot find a will (or a copy) in the home of the person who has died, ask the person’s bank and their solicitors if they know where it is. You can also:

· Check whether the person who has died stored their will with HM Courts and Tribunal Service (HMCTS). For information on storing a will with HMCTS and withdrawing the will, see the HMCTS links in the Further help section at the end of this note.

· Conduct a search of the Certainty national will register (https://www.nationalwillregister.co.uk) which is used by a number of law firms to register wills and access Certainty’s will-finding services or other commercial companies which offer a registration service.

· Place advertisements in the Law Society’s Gazette asking for information about a will that the person who died might have made.

Otherwise, you can contact any solicitor whose practice includes wills and probate. The solicitor can help with the searches for the will and can also explain what happens to the property of an individual who dies without leaving a will. When this happens, administrators are appointed: They are usually close relatives of the person who has died and they will have authority to deal with the estate in much the same way as executors.

Do you have a right to see the will?

Only the executors appointed in a will are entitled to see the will before probate is granted. If you are not an executor, the solicitors of the person who has died or the person’s bank, if it has the will, cannot allow you to see it or send you a copy of it, unless the executors agree. However, they can tell you who the executors are. They can also let you know what the will, or a note kept with it, says about the kind of funeral the person wanted.

What kind of funeral did the person who has died want?

Many people leave notes saying what kind of funeral they would like, or they express their wishes in their wills. You are not legally obliged to follow the wishes of a person who has died but usually relatives and friends prefer to do so. It can be distressing to discover after the funeral that it was not arranged as the person wished, so look as soon as possible for a note and for the will.

Medical research and organ donation

If you know that the person who has died wanted to leave their body for medical research, look for the relevant consent form. The form may be stored with the person’s important papers or with the will. The form will have details of the relevant research institution: contact it and follow the procedure it recommends.

A person’s organs may be used for transplant. Donated organs have to be removed within 48 hours of the death.

From 20 May 2020, the law on organ donation in England changed to an opt-out system. This means that in most cases, adults who die in England will be treated as having agreed to be an organ donor. The opt-out system does not apply:

· Where the person who died made a decision on consent before their death (either by recording their decision to give or refuse consent or naming someone to make that decision for them).

· To persons falling within one of the following excluded groups:

· people under the age of 18;

· people who lack mental capacity;

· visitors to England, and those not living there by choice;

· people who have lived in England for less than 12 months before their death.

· Where a person such as a partner, certain family members or a friend of long standing, provides information that would lead a reasonable person to decide that the person who died would not have consented to be a donor.

From December 2015, the law in Wales is that if the person who died had not registered an organ and tissue donation decision (opt in or opt out), they will be treated as not objecting to becoming a donor.

For further information on the law on organ donation in England and Wales, see the web links in the section Further help at the end of this note.

Telling the executors about the death

If the person who has died left a will which does not appoint you as an executor but you know the people who are appointed executors, make sure they know about the death. You and the executors can then decide who is to register the death, if this has not already been done, and who is to arrange the funeral.

If you have registered the death and obtained copy death certificates but you are not an executor, hand the copy certificates over to the executors or to their solicitors.

If you are not going to deal with the DWP, hand over the form relating to social security benefits too (see the section above Form relating to social security benefits).

If the executors are arranging the funeral, give them the certificate for burial or cremation (see the section above Certificate for burial or cremation).

If, because you cannot find a will, you do not know who the personal representatives are, you can still arrange and hold the funeral.

Arranging the funeral and paying the funeral expenses

When you have confirmed that the body is to be buried or cremated rather than given for medical research, give the certificate for burial or cremation to the funeral director. The funeral director will discuss the arrangements with you and guide you through the process leading up to the funeral and the burial or cremation.

Paying for the funeral

By taking on the responsibility for arranging the funeral, you are also taking on the responsibility of paying for it. You will eventually be able to reimburse yourself from the estate of the person who has died, if there is enough money in the estate to cover the funeral expenses.

You, or other family members, may be willing to pay the funeral expenses, on the basis that you will claim repayment from the estate later. However, there are other ways of paying for the funeral:

· Look through the papers of the person who has died for anything relating to a pre-paid funeral plan. If you find that the person subscribed to a plan, contact the provider and follow the procedure it recommends.

· A bank where the person who has died had an account may be prepared to release money from the account. The bank “freezes” an account when it learns about the account-holder’s death, making no further payments out. However, it may make an exception for funeral expenses. Contact the bank to ask whether it will release money to pay for the funeral.

· Look through the papers of the person who has died for anything relating to life insurance or pensions and contact the providers. If the person had a job at the time of the death, contact the employer’s HR department. Lump sum payments can often be made from life insurance policies and pension schemes very soon after a death. However, you should, if possible, consult the solicitors advising the personal representatives before using lump sums of this type to pay funeral expenses: there may be a more tax-efficient way to use the money.

· If you are arranging a funeral for a partner or close relative and you are on a low income, you may qualify for help in paying for it. You may have to repay some or all of it from the estate of the person who has died. For more information, see the government websites listed in the section Further help at the end of this note.

Telling people about the death

Executors See the section above Telling the executors about the death.

Solicitors

You may need to contact the solicitors of the person who has died soon after the death to ask if they have the will and to find out who the executors are (see the section above Is there a will?):

· If there is a will.

The executors appointed in a will do not necessarily need a solicitor to help them deal with the estate. They can ask the solicitors holding the will to send it to them and can deal with the estate themselves, following guidance that is readily available on the internet and in books. If the property passing under the will is uncomplicated and the will itself is straightforward and was prepared by a solicitor, then executors may find it quite easy to go ahead without legal advice. However, you need a businesslike approach and quite a lot of time to deal with even a simple estate.

If the executors decide to take legal advice, they can either go to the solicitors who prepared the will or to a different firm. If they have not contacted the solicitor before the funeral, they should do so soon afterwards, and arrange a meeting. For guidance about the papers and information they should take to the meeting, see the list below of documents to look for before meeting solicitors.

If there is no will.

If the person who has died seems not to have left a will, then one or more of the person’s closest relatives (wife, husband or civil partner, father or mother, brother or sister, son or daughter) should contact a solicitor for advice. The solicitor can help with further searches for the will (see the section above Is there a will?) and explain what to do if the person is intestate.

Bank or building society

Tell the bank or building society where the person who has died had a current account about the death.

Private landlord or local authority

If the person who has died was a tenant living in rented accommodation, tell the landlord or local authority about the death. If the accommodation was shared and the remaining occupant was not a co-tenant but wants to stay in the property, the landlord may be willing to make a new rental agreement with the remaining occupant. They may find it helpful to get guidance from a solicitor or the CAB before approaching the landlord.

Employer

If the person who has died was in employment at the time of the death, tell the employer’s HR department about the death. It is best to do this soon after the death to speed up the process of paying out any salary due to the estate and lump sums from a pension scheme.

DVLA

Contact the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) to cancel the driving licence of the person who has died and to request that the registration details of their car are amended. The contact details for the DVLA are on the GOV.UK website listed in the section Further help at the end of the note, or you can phone the DVLA for further information about this. Alternatively, use the DWP’s “Tell us once” service if it is available in your area (see the section above “Tell us once” service).

If anyone is going to drive a car that belonged to the person who has died, check that they are adequately insured.

Passport Office

Look for the passport of the person who has died and return it to the UK Identity and Passport Office so that it can be cancelled. Alternatively, use the DWP’s “Tell us once” service if it is available in your area (see the section above “Tell us once” service).

Utility companies and other service providers

You can skip this section if the person who has died lived in a residential or nursing home and no longer had a private home.

The providers of services to the home must be told about the death. For example:

· Utility companies supplying gas, electricity and water.

· Broadband, phone and satellite TV providers.

· The Television Licensing Authority.

· The local Council Tax authority.

· Suppliers of other regular services, such as gardening and cleaning.

If the suppliers addressed their bills to the person who has died, tell them about the death and, where appropriate, arrange for them to take meter readings as close to the death as possible. If someone else is going to go on living in the property, contact the supplier to arrange for the account to be transferred into that person’s name, if they want to go on receiving the service – or arrange to switch to another supplier. Remember that direct debits from a bank or building society account of a person who has died, including direct debits to utility suppliers, are cancelled when the bank or building society hears about the death.

Royal Mail

If the person who has died was living alone in a private home, contact the Royal Mail to arrange for post to be redirected. Redirecting to one of the personal representatives is best, since the post is likely to include information about the person’s assets and debts

Bank accounts and bills

Joint accounts

If you had a joint bank or building society account with the person who has died, then from the time of the death you automatically own the money in the account. The account is not “frozen” after the death and you do not need a grant of probate or any authority from the personal representatives to access it. You should, however, tell the bank about the death of the other account holder.

Paying bills

Bank accounts and other assets in the sole name of the person who has died are usually “frozen” from the death until the personal representatives obtain a grant of probate or letters of administration. If the person who has died paid household bills, then the other members of the household may be worried about how to manage between the death and the grant. There are various ways of dealing with this problem, for example:

· If a member of the household had a joint account with the person who has died, that account can be used to pay bills. See the section above Joint accounts.

· It may be possible to borrow from a family member or from the bank.

· If the person who has died had life insurance or was a member of a pension scheme, a lump sum may be payable soon after the death.

It is a good idea to contact a solicitor or the CAB for advice on the different options.

The next step: gathering information

If you are an executor appointed in the will of the person who has died, or the person is intestate and you are entitled to be appointed an administrator, then in the months following the death you will be involved in the administration of the estate.

Whether or not the personal representatives of the person who has died choose to have solicitors helping them with the process, their first task is to assemble as much information as possible relating to the person’s assets and debts. The personal representatives may ask for your help in assembling the information, even if you are not a personal representative yourself.

A list of papers and information that the executors or administrators are likely to need is in the list below of documents to look for before meeting solicitors. Bear in mind that if the person who has died had a computer, they may have kept records in electronic form and received bank statements and bills through the internet. If you can find the relevant files on the person’s computer, print them. If you cannot find them (for example, because you do not know the password of the person who has died), simply explain the situation to the personal representatives or their solicitors.

Checklists

This section contains checklists of the information and documents you will need at various stages after a person’s death.

Information to keep at hand

It is useful to note down the following information and keep it to hand, whether you are an executor or helping with the practical arrangements following the death:

· Full name of the person who has died and any former names.

· Address at death.

· Date of birth.

· Place of birth.

· Date of marriage or civil partnership.

· National Insurance number.

· NHS number.

· Tax reference.

Documents to look for immediately after the death

If the person who has died was living alone in a private home, someone should go to the home on the day of the death to look for papers relating to insurance of the person’s home and its contents, preferably the home and contents policy itself. (See the section above Insurance.)

Documents to look for before registering the death

The following papers contain information needed for registering the death:

· Birth certificate.

· Marriage or civil partnership certificate.

· Death certificate of former wife, husband or civil partner.

· State pension or allowance book.

· Passport.

Even if you cannot find these papers, you can register the death if you have all the necessary information. (See the section above Registering the death.)

Documents to look for before the funeral

If possible, try to find the following documents before the funeral but the funeral can go ahead even if you do not find them:

· The most recent will of the person who has died, or a copy of it.

· Any note saying what kind of funeral the person wanted.

· Papers relating to life insurance or pension arrangements. (See the above sections Is there a will?, What kind of funeral did the person who has died want? and paying for the funeral.)

Documents to look for as soon as possible

As soon as possible after the death, but not necessarily before the funeral, find up-to-date papers and information relating to as many of the following as are relevant:

· Current bank or building society account.

· Employer.

· Rental agreement.

· Driving licence and vehicle registration.

· Suppliers of gas, electricity and water.

· Broadband, phone and satellite TV providers.

· Television licence.

· Council Tax.

· Other service providers, such as cleaners and gardeners.

This information will enable you, or the personal representatives, to deal with the matters set out in the section on telling people about the death.

Documents to look for before meeting solicitors

The personal representatives will need papers containing up-to-date information about the following to enable them, or their solicitors, to start on the administration of the estate:

· Bank and building society accounts of the person who has died.

· Insurance policies

· Property deeds.

· Share certificates, dividend vouchers and other papers relating to shareholdings.

· Statements relating to savings and investments.

· Valuations, for example of jewellery, paintings or furniture.

· Credit card statements.

· Personal loan agreements.

· Hire purchase agreements.

· Mortgages.

· Recent tax returns.

· PAYE P60 and recent payslips.

· Unpaid invoices addressed to the person who has died.

· Unpaid invoices issued by the person who has died.

If the personal representatives arrange to meet the solicitors, it will be helpful if they take these papers to the meeting.

Words used in this note

Administrator: The personal representative of an intestate.

Administration of the estate: This is the task carried out by the executors or administrators of a person who has died. It involves assembling all the person’s assets, paying the person’s debts and any tax due, and handing over whatever remains to the people who are entitled to it under the will or the statutory rules that apply when an intestate dies.

CAB: The Citizens’ Advice Bureau.

DWP: The Department of Work and Pensions.

Estate: Everything that belonged to a person who has died and all the person’s debts.

Executor: A personal representative appointed in a will.

Grant of probate: A document issued by a probate registry to the executors of a person who has died confirming that they have authority to deal with the person’s estate.

HMCTS: HM Courts and Tribunals Service.

Intestate: A person who dies without making a will.

Personal representatives: The people who have the legal authority to deal with the estate of a person who has died. They are often, but not always, members of the person’s family. If there is a will, the personal representatives are named in the will and called the executors. If there is no will, a solicitor whose practice includes wills and probate can tell you who the personal representatives are.

Probate registry: A government office that deals with probate matters.

Further help

For further information, see:

· https://www.gov.uk/when-someone-dies, the official government website containing guidance on what to do when someone dies and a link to the DWP’s “Tell us once” service which offers a means of notifying government department and local councils that someone has died.

· https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate, to find a will or “grant of representation” for people who died in or after 1858, recorded in England and Wales.

· https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/store-a-will-with-the-probate-service/how-to-store-a-will-with-the-probate-service and https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-withdraw-a-will-from-storage-with-hmcts/how-to-withdraw-a-will-stored-with-hmcts which provide guidance on storing a will with HMCTS and withdrawing it.

· http://www.lawsociety.org.uk/for-the-public/common-legal-issues/probate/, the Law Society’s summary guidance of the rules that apply when someone dies.

· https://legalservicesboard.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Guidance-on-probate-services.pdf for guidance compiled by the Legal Services Board on regulation of firms and individuals carrying out probate services.

· https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/859076/guide-to-coroner-services-bereaved-people-jan-2020.pdf for guidance on coroner services for bereaved people issued by the Ministry of Justice.

· https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/uk-laws/organ-donation-law-in-england/ which explains the law on organ donation in England.

· https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/uk-laws/organ-donation-law-in-wales/ which explains the law on organ donation in Wales.