How to Find Assets in an Estate UK (2026): Tracing Accounts, Property & Pensions

An executor is under a fundamental duty to identify, collect, and preserve all assets belonging to the estate before distributing it to beneficiaries. This duty of inquiry extends beyond assets the executor already knows about — the executor must make reasonable enquiries to discover unknown assets. Failure to properly identify assets exposes the executor to personal liability: if a beneficiary later discovers that an asset was missed and distributed or dissipated, the executor can be personally required to make good the shortfall (the doctrine of 'devastavit'). The duty of reasonable inquiry means the executor should: (1) carefully read all correspondence and papers at the deceased's home and in their filing system; (2) review the deceased's bank statements for regular payments, income streams, and direct debits that indicate subscriptions, investments, or pension income; (3) contact all financial institutions identified from statements or correspondence; (4) use the tracing tools and registers described below; (5) review the deceased's previous tax returns (obtainable from HMRC) for income streams — dividends, rental income, interest — that reveal asset holdings. The executor's duty is to make reasonable enquiries, not exhaustive ones — but what is reasonable increases with the size and complexity of the estate. An executor who fails to look for obvious indicators of hidden assets will have difficulty explaining the omission to a dissatisfied beneficiary.

Bank accounts and savings are the most commonly overlooked assets, particularly for older deceased persons who may have had accounts with multiple institutions over their lifetime. The key tracing resources are: (1) My Lost Account (mylostaccount.org.uk): a free service run by UK Finance, the Building Societies Association, and NS&I that searches for dormant accounts and savings with participating banks and building societies. Submit a claim with the deceased's full name, date of birth, last known addresses, and approximate account details. Results typically take a few weeks; (2) NS&I (National Savings and Investments): Premium Bonds, savings certificates, income bonds, and other NS&I products are traced at nsandi.com. NS&I can be contacted directly to check whether the deceased held any products — they require evidence of death (certified copy) and executor authority. NS&I releases funds of up to £5,000 without probate; larger amounts require a grant; (3) Bank statements and correspondence: review the last 2–3 years of paper and electronic bank statements for standing orders, direct debits, and interest payments. Regular payments to financial institutions suggest existing accounts. An interest receipt from an unrecognised source indicates a savings account elsewhere; (4) Safe deposit boxes: some branches hold safe deposit boxes for customers — check with all banks identified from correspondence; (5) Cash: check the home carefully for cash (particularly in common hiding places) before distributing the estate. Cash found is an estate asset that must be declared for IHT purposes.

Pension death benefits are among the most valuable and frequently overlooked estate assets (though most defined contribution pensions and personal pension death benefits pass outside the estate — via the pension trustees' discretion and the expression of wishes form — they must still be identified and any benefits claimed for the appropriate beneficiaries). Tracing approaches: (1) Pension Tracing Service (gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details): a free government service for tracing workplace and personal pensions. Requires the name and address of the employer (for workplace pensions) or the pension provider's name. The service holds a database of pension schemes and provides contact details — it does not hold account information and cannot confirm membership; (2) Employer records: for workplace pensions, contact each employer the deceased worked for (identified from P60s, payslips, the HMRC tax record, or CV if available) and ask whether the deceased was a member of an occupational pension scheme and what the death benefit position is; (3) HMRC and pension income: if the deceased was already drawing a pension, it will appear in HMRC records and on bank statements as regular pension income. Contact the paying pension provider identified from the income stream; (4) Department for Work and Pensions (DWP): for State Pension, contact DWP Bereavement Service (part of Tell Us Once) to stop payments and identify any arrears owed. In some cases a surviving spouse may be entitled to Additional State Pension or other state benefits; (5) Insurance policies with investment components: some investment bonds, endowments, and with-profits policies function as retirement savings — look for annual statements from insurance companies in the deceased's papers.

Property is typically the most obvious estate asset, but executors should check for property interests they may not be aware of, including inherited shares of property, equity release schemes, and foreign property. Key resources: (1) HM Land Registry (search at gov.uk/search-property-information-land-registry): any registered freehold or leasehold property in England or Wales appears on the Land Register. Search by address or by the deceased's name (a name search costs £4 per name). The register confirms whether the property is owned solely or jointly (and as joint tenants or tenants in common), and any mortgages or charges. Note: approximately 15% of freehold land in England and Wales is unregistered — for unregistered property, the title is in the title deeds (paper documents) rather than the register; (2) Title deeds and conveyancing files: the deceased's solicitor may hold original title deeds or copies; (3) Mortgages: any mortgage on a property registered at Land Registry appears as a charge on the title. Contact the lender to establish the current balance for IHT valuation; (4) Equity release schemes: check correspondence for equity release (lifetime mortgage or home reversion) — these affect the net value of the property in the estate. The equity release provider must be notified and the plan repaid from the property sale proceeds; (5) Foreign property: any real estate in another country owned by the deceased. Review correspondence, bank statements for overseas mortgage payments, and any foreign bank accounts. Foreign property requires separate legal action in the relevant jurisdiction (see overseas-assets-probate-uk); (6) Property held in trust: property held in a bare trust or IPDI trust in which the deceased was the beneficial owner forms part of their estate for IHT — look for declaration of trust documents.

Investments can be held in multiple forms and through multiple channels, and executors often underestimate the range of investment vehicles a deceased person may have used. Tracing approaches: (1) Share certificates: physical share certificates in the home or safe deposit box. Note that companies can have changed names, merged, or been acquired — search by company name if the original company no longer exists; (2) Investment accounts and ISAs: stockbrokers, investment platforms (Hargreaves Lansdown, AJ Bell, Interactive Investor, Vanguard, etc.) and ISA managers hold records of all investment accounts. Identify platforms from statements, correspondence, or bank direct debits; (3) CREST: for shares in UK quoted companies held in electronic form without a certificate, the registrar maintains the record. For CREST-held shares, contact the relevant company's share registrar (Equiniti, Link Asset Services, Computershare) — they can confirm holdings registered in the deceased's name; (4) Dividend payments: regular dividend payments appearing on bank statements identify shareholdings. The paying company or their registrar can provide holding details; (5) Investment bonds: whole-of-life and investment bonds from insurance companies (Aviva, Legal & General, Prudential, Standard Life, etc.) may have significant accumulated value. Look for annual statements or original policy documents; (6) Unclaimed Assets Register (uar.co.uk): a paid search service (£25) that traces dormant investment accounts, shares, and insurance policies through participating financial institutions; (7) Companies House: if the deceased was a director or shareholder in a private company, search at companies.gov.uk for the company's registered address, accounts, and shareholders — confirmation shareholding from the company's share register.

Life insurance, protection policies, and other insurance products can represent significant asset values, and policies written in trust (which pass outside the estate) must still be identified so that the trustee-beneficiary can make a claim. Approaches: (1) Policy documents: search the home for paper policy documents, premium booklets, and insurance certificates. Many older policies are paper-only; (2) Direct debits: regular direct debit payments to insurance companies on bank statements indicate active policies. Contact each company to confirm whether the deceased held a life, critical illness, income protection, or investment policy; (3) Life Insurance Search Register: the Association of British Insurers operates a database allowing searches for in-force policies. Contact the ABI directly or use a solicitor to make a formal enquiry; (4) Employer schemes: group life insurance (death in service) through an employer is typically nominated to beneficiaries outside the estate — but must be identified and claimed. Contact the employer's HR department or pension/benefits administrator; (5) Mortgage protection insurance: a life insurance policy specifically linked to a mortgage may pay off the outstanding mortgage balance on death — contact the lender and insurer; (6) Premium bond winnings: in the period between death and the estate being wound up, Premium Bonds can continue to win prizes — check with NS&I; (7) Tax rebates: HMRC may owe a tax rebate for the deceased's final tax year. Contact HMRC Bereavement Helpline (0300 200 3300) to notify of death and request a tax calculation for the final period. Any repayment owed is an estate asset; (8) Cryptocurrencies and digital wallets: check for hardware wallets (Ledger, Trezor), notes of seed phrases or private keys, and any exchange accounts (Coinbase, Kraken, Binance). See cryptocurrency-in-a-will-uk for the specific tracing and access issues.