The Executor Pack

A practical guide for the people you've chosen to act for you.

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A note before you begin

You've been named as an executor in someone's will. That's a position of real trust — the person who wrote this will believed you would handle their affairs with care.

This pack is the guide they wanted you to have. It walks you through what an executor does, in what order, with the resources you'll need at each step. Plain English. No legal jargon you don't need.

You don't have to read it all at once. The first section covers the first seven days — that's all that matters right now. The rest is here for when you need it.

If anything in this pack is unclear, or the estate looks complicated (foreign assets, a business, family disagreements, an insolvent estate), please speak to a solicitor before you make decisions you can't undo. There's a section near the end on when professional help is worth the cost.

This pack is provided by Trusted Hands Will Writing as a guide. It is not legal advice. The law referenced applies to England & Wales.

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What an executor actually does

In short: you collect what the deceased owned, pay what they owed, and pass what's left to the people named in the will.

Slightly less short:

1. Find the will and confirm you're an executor.
2. Register the death and arrange the funeral.
3. Notify the institutions — banks, employers, pension providers, HMRC, the Department for Work and Pensions, the local council.
4. Build a picture of the estate — what they owned, what they owed, what it's all worth.
5. Decide whether you need probate (most of the time, yes — but not always).
6. Pay any inheritance tax owed.
7. Apply for the Grant of Probate — the legal document that lets you act.
8. Collect the assets and pay off debts.
9. Distribute the estate to the beneficiaries named in the will.
10. Keep the records for at least twelve years in case anyone makes a claim later.

You can do all of this yourself. You can also pay a solicitor to do some or all of it. Most executors do the early work themselves and bring in help only if something complicated comes up.

You are entitled to be reimbursed from the estate for reasonable expenses (probate fees, postage, travel to property, that sort of thing). You are not paid for your time unless the will specifically says so or you are a professional executor.

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The first seven days

Take your time. Almost nothing legally has to happen in the first week except registering the death and starting funeral arrangements. The estate will wait.

Register the death

In England & Wales you have five days to register a death (eight in Scotland). You'll need to make an appointment at the local register office where the death occurred. Take the medical certificate of cause of death (the doctor or hospital provides this) and, if you have them, the deceased's birth certificate, marriage certificate, and NHS card.

You'll come away with:

• A death certificate (you'll want extra certified copies — most institutions need an original; £11 each from the registrar, far cheaper than ordering them later).
• A certificate for burial or cremation (the "green form") for the funeral director.
• A unique reference number to use the Tell Us Once service.

Tip — Tell Us Once. Tell Us Once is a free government service that notifies HMRC, DWP, the passport office, the DVLA, and the local council in one go. Use it. It saves a fortune in time.

Find the will

If you're reading this pack the deceased probably gave you a copy. If not, common places to look:

• The deceased's home filing/safe
• Their solicitor (if they had one)
• A bank safe-deposit box
• The National Will Register (a paid search if no copy can be found)

If the deceased used Trusted Hands, the digital copy is in their Vault and is also accessible to you, the named executor, on receipt of a death certificate. Email executors@trustedhandswillwriting.co.uk with your name and the deceased's name to start the verification process.

Arrange the funeral

The will may specify funeral wishes — burial, cremation, religious or non-religious, donations in lieu of flowers. Funeral wishes are not legally binding, but executors should follow them where reasonable.

Funeral costs are paid by the estate as a priority debt — meaning the funeral director can usually be paid directly from the deceased's bank account even before probate is granted. Ask the bank about their "release of funeral funds" process.

If money is genuinely tight, the Funeral Expenses Payment scheme may help.

Secure property and pets

If the deceased lived alone:

• Make sure the home is secure and insured (notify the home insurer that the property is now unoccupied — most policies have a 30–60 day vacancy clause).
• Forward post to your address.
• Check on pets — if the will names a guardian, contact them; otherwise contact a rescue charity.
• Don't throw anything away yet, including paperwork. You'll need it.

What you don't need to do this week

• Apply for probate. Banks and other institutions won't act on the will until probate is granted (in most cases), so there's nothing to gain by rushing.
• Distribute anything. Don't promise beneficiaries anything until the estate is fully understood.
• Cancel utilities. Wait until you know whether the property is being sold or kept, and whether anyone is still living there.

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Weeks two to four

Notify the institutions

If you used Tell Us Once, the government departments are handled. You still need to notify:

• Banks and building societies (every account)
• Mortgage lender (if there's a mortgage)
• Insurance companies — life, home, car, travel, private medical
• Pension providers (state pension is via DWP; private and workplace pensions need separate notification)
• Premium Bonds, ISAs, investment platforms
• Credit cards and store cards
• Employer (if still working)
• Subscriptions — Netflix, Amazon, gym, magazines (these auto-renew and waste estate money)
• GP, dentist, hospital (the surgery should also be notified)
• The Royal Mail (set up redirect)

Each will ask for a death certificate (or a certified copy) and the executor's name and ID. Many banks now have a single "bereavement team" that handles everything — call the main number and ask.

Get a sense of what the estate is worth

You don't need exact figures yet, but you need a rough total to decide:

• Whether probate is needed
• Whether inheritance tax is owed

Put together a list:

• Property — get an estate agent valuation (or two) and check Land Registry for ownership/mortgages
• Bank accounts — closing balances at date of death
• Pensions — death benefits or remaining pots
• Investments — share certificates, ISAs, fund platforms
• Business interests — shares, partnerships, sole-trader assets
• Personal possessions — only items of significant value need formal valuation (£500+ rule of thumb)
• Debts — mortgage, credit cards, loans, utilities owed, tax owed

Rough rule for estate value: assets minus debts. Funeral costs come out of the estate but are not counted as a debt for inheritance tax purposes.

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Do you need probate?

Probate is the legal authority to deal with the deceased's estate. You apply for it; the court grants it.

You usually need probate if:

• The deceased owned a property in their sole name
• They had bank/savings accounts above a threshold (every bank sets its own — typically £5,000–£50,000)
• They held investments outside an ISA
• The estate is worth more than around £15,000–£20,000 in total

You usually don't need probate if:

• Everything was held jointly with a surviving spouse/partner (it passes by survivorship — automatic, no probate needed)
• The estate is small (under most banks' thresholds) and there's no property
• All accounts were nominated to specific people (some pensions, some life insurance)

If in doubt, ring the bank — they'll tell you whether they need a Grant before releasing the money.

Important — joint vs sole ownership matters a lot. A house held as joint tenants passes automatically to the survivor — the will doesn't apply to it. A house held as tenants in common does pass through the will and through probate. The Land Registry record will say which.

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Applying for probate

You apply at gov.uk/applying-for-probate. The application is online for most estates.

Forms you'll need:

• PA1P — application for probate where there is a will
• IHT400 — full inheritance tax return (only if estate exceeds the tax-free threshold, see below)
• IHT205 — short tax form for "excepted estates" (most simple estates that don't owe IHT)

The fee:

• £273 if the estate is over £5,000
• Free if under £5,000
• Extra copies of the Grant: £1.50 each (order plenty — every institution wants one)

The timeline:

• HMRC processes any IHT return first (allow 3–4 weeks)
• The Probate Service then processes the application (currently 8–16 weeks)
• During this period the estate is mostly frozen — banks won't release money beyond the funeral

Can a solicitor do this for you? Yes, and it's worth it for complicated estates. Expect to pay either a fixed fee (typically £1,500–£3,000 for straightforward estates) or a percentage of the estate (1–4%, often capped). Get quotes from at least two firms before instructing one.

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Inheritance tax — the basics

Most estates pay no inheritance tax. The thresholds are generous.

The Nil-Rate Band (NRB): every estate gets a tax-free allowance of £325,000.

The Residence Nil-Rate Band (RNRB): an extra £175,000 if the deceased's home passes to direct descendants (children, stepchildren, grandchildren).

The spouse exemption: anything passing to a UK-domiciled spouse or civil partner is completely exempt, no matter the amount.

Transferable allowances: if the deceased's spouse died first and didn't use their allowances, the survivor's estate can claim them too. So a married couple's combined allowance can be up to £1,000,000 for a family home passing to children.

The rate: 40% on whatever exceeds the allowances (or 36% if 10%+ of the estate is left to charity).

When it's paid: within six months of the end of the month of death, or HMRC starts charging interest. For estates with property (where money is locked up until sale), there's an instalment option to spread the bill over ten years.

If the estate may owe IHT, get an accountant or solicitor involved. Get the calculations checked — penalties for getting them wrong fall on the executor personally.

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Pay the debts

Once probate is granted, the bank releases the deceased's money to you (as executor) into an executor's account. From this account you pay:

1. Funeral costs (priority)
2. Inheritance tax (where applicable)
3. Probate fees and professional fees
4. Secured debts (mortgage)
5. Preferential debts (some employee wages)
6. Unsecured debts (credit cards, utilities, loans)
7. Beneficiaries — last

A protective step every executor should take: before distributing anything, place a Statutory Advert under section 27 of the Trustee Act 1925, in:

• The London Gazette
• A local newspaper covering the area where the deceased lived

The advert gives creditors two months to come forward. If you wait the two months and then distribute, you are personally protected from claims by creditors who pop up later. Most online probate services include this advert as standard for around £100–£200; it's well worth doing.

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Distribute the estate

Once debts are paid, you distribute according to the will:

1. Specific gifts first — "I leave my watch to my brother John."
2. Pecuniary legacies — fixed sums of money. "I leave £5,000 to my niece Emma."
3. The residue — everything left over, divided as the will instructs (usually a percentage split between residual beneficiaries).

Get each beneficiary to sign a receipt when they receive their share. Keep these with your records.

If a beneficiary cannot be found, you may need to:

• Hire a tracing agent
• Apply to the court for a Benjamin Order (court permission to distribute as if the missing person were dead)

If you distribute and they later turn up, you can be personally liable. Don't skip this step.

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Keep the records

After everything is distributed, keep a complete file of:

• The grant of probate
• The will
• Bank statements, valuations, tax forms
• Receipts from beneficiaries
• The estate accounts (a record of every penny in and out)
• Statutory advert proof

For at least twelve years. That's the longest realistic window in which a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975, or against you personally, could surface.

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Time limits — the executor's cheat sheet

• Register the death — 5 days (England & Wales)
• Arrange the funeral — no legal deadline, usually 1–3 weeks
• Apply for probate — no legal deadline, usually within 6 months
• Pay inheritance tax — 6 months from end of month of death
• Statutory creditor advert minimum wait — 2 months
• Family or dependant 1975 Act claims against the estate — 6 months from grant of probate
• Estate distribution (typical) — 9–12 months for a standard estate
• Keep records — at least 12 years

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When to get a solicitor

You don't need one for most estates. You probably do need one if:

• The estate is insolvent (debts exceed assets)
• There are foreign assets or the deceased was non-UK domiciled
• There's a business, farm, or partnership involved
• The will is being challenged or someone is threatening a claim
• There are complex trusts in the will or set up by the deceased
• The estate may owe inheritance tax and you're not confident about the calculation
• Beneficiaries are missing and tracing has failed
• Multiple executors disagree on how to proceed

Costs vary wildly. Get fixed-fee quotes — many firms will quote a flat fee for grant-only work (where they just get probate; you do the rest) which costs much less than full administration.

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Useful contacts and resources

Government services

• Tell Us Once: gov.uk/tell-us-once
• Apply for probate: gov.uk/applying-for-probate
• Inheritance tax: gov.uk/inheritance-tax
• Bereavement helpline (DWP): 0800 731 0469
• HMRC bereavement helpline: 0300 200 3300

Probate Service

• General enquiries: 0300 303 0648
• Probate Registry locations: gov.uk/probate-registries

Other useful organisations

• Citizens Advice — free general advice: citizensadvice.org.uk
• Cruse Bereavement Support: 0808 808 1677
• The Law Society (find a solicitor): solicitors.lawsociety.org.uk
• STEP (specialist estate practitioners): step.org/find-a-trust-and-estate-practitioner

Trusted Hands

• Executor support: executors@trustedhandswillwriting.co.uk
• Vault access for executors: trustedhandswillwriting.co.uk/executor
• General contact: trustedhandswillwriting.co.uk/contact

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Glossary

Administrator — like an executor, but appointed by the court when there's no will, or when no executor is named or willing to act.

Beneficiary — anyone who inherits something under a will.

Codicil — an amendment to a will. Treated with the will as one document.

Estate — everything the deceased owned (assets) minus what they owed (debts).

Executor — the person named in a will to carry out the deceased's wishes. That's you.

Grant of Probate — the court document giving the executor legal authority to act. Without a will it's called Letters of Administration.

Inheritance Tax (IHT) — tax on the value of an estate above the allowances. 40% headline rate.

Intestate — having died without a valid will. The intestacy rules then decide who inherits.

Legacy — a gift in a will. A specific legacy is an item; a pecuniary legacy is a sum of money.

Letters of Administration — the court document giving an administrator authority to act when there's no executor.

Probate — the whole legal process of administering a deceased person's estate.

Residue — what's left of the estate after debts, taxes, and specific gifts have been paid.

Statutory Advert — the creditor notice in the London Gazette and local paper that protects executors from late claims.

Testator / Testatrix — the person who made the will. (Testator is sometimes used for any gender.)

Trustee — someone holding assets for someone else's benefit. Where a will sets up a trust (e.g., for children under 18), the executors usually become trustees.

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A final note

Being an executor is administrative, not heroic. The deceased trusted you because they trusted your judgement, not because they thought you knew probate law.

Take it one step at a time. The institutions you'll deal with handle this every day. The forms look intimidating but are designed for ordinary people to fill in. When in doubt, ask — banks have bereavement teams, HMRC has a helpline, the Probate Service has a phone number on every form.

And give yourself a moment now and then. The person who wrote this will would not have wanted you to burn out doing it.

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This Executor Pack is provided by Trusted Hands Will Writing as a guide for executors and is not a substitute for legal advice. The law referenced applies to England & Wales. Trusted Hands is not a firm of solicitors.

© Trusted Hands Will Writing Ltd. Reproduction permitted for personal use by the executor named in the deceased's will.