It can be a difficult and emotional time after the death of a loved one and being named as executor can sometimes feel like an overwhelming task.
Your Old Mill adviser, along with our Estate Administration team are here to help with any aspect of the estate administration, however big or small.
This guide is a starting point to help you stay organised during a challenging time. If you need further assistance, reach out to professionals who can provide tailored advice and support.
Natalie Galvin Associate Director, Trusts
01935 709397 natalie.galvin@om.uk
Let’s make this difficult process as easy as possible.
Immediate actions
Contact key individuals
• Notify immediate family members and close friends.
• If the death occurred in a hospital or care home, staff will often help guide you.
Obtain a medical certificate
• The attending doctor, hospital, or coroner issues a medical certificate stating the cause of death. It is required to register the death.
Registering a death
Register the death within five days of receiving confirmation from the medical examiner.
• Arrange an appointment with the local Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages in the area where the death occurred. A list can be found at www.gov. uk/register-offices. Bring with you the medical certificate of cause of death with you, identification of the deceased (passport, driving licence, birth certificate), and any supporting documentation like a marriage certificate (if applicable).
• It is important to consider how many death certificate copies will be required, the more copies you obtain, the quicker it will be to notify providers and obtain date of death valuations. Depending on the assets held we suggest between five to ten If in doubt, please ask us.
Notify key organisations
Complete the Tell Us Once service:
• Tell Us Once - GOV.UK (www. gov.uk) - this is a government service that once completed will notify all government departments of the death (such as HMRC, DVLA, passport office, DWP, and local council). This is usually done as part of the registration process.
• Please note this does not include TV Licensing and a separate notification is required regarding car tax. Telling DVLA after someone dies: Keeping a vehicle - GOV. UK (www.gov.uk).
• You can also notify Royal Mail to stop ‘junk mail’.
Arrange the funeral
• Check the deceased’s Will or written wishes regarding funeral arrangements.
• Decide whether to use a funeral director or plan it yourself.
• Pay attention to costs and explore any financial support available (e.g. government funeral payments).
The financial and legal steps
• If a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is in place, you must report the death of the donor to the Office of the Public Guardian by sending them the original LPA, along with all certified copies.
• Consider if you are entitled to bereavement benefits. Please check with us if you are unsure.
• Locate the original Will, this will be required to obtain probate. In most cases this will be kept with the solicitor that drafted it or in a safe place at home.
• Notify other providers not covered by the Tell Us Once service such as banks and utility providers*. Any sole bank accounts will be frozen once they have been notified of the death, however joint accounts will continue. Although frozen, banks will still allow the funeral costs to be paid along with any Inheritance Tax (IHT) due.
• Keep a record of any under/ overpayments on utilities and pensions, these will need to be reported as part of the IHT return.
• Gather a list of the deceased’s assets, including: Bank accounts and savings, property and vehicles, investments, stocks or pensions, and personal high value belongings.
• Obtain date of death valuations/balances for all assets owned by the deceased.*
• Any land or property held by the deceased will require a valuation. This valuation must be accurate as it will affect the amount of IHT that becomes payable along with the amount of Capital Gains Tax due should the property be sold. We recommend that either a formal valuation is obtained, or the opinions of estate agents.
• Consider whether any personal possessions may require an independent valuation, such as cars, paintings, jewellery, and antiques. Any individual items of jewellery valued in excess of £1,500 will require a valuation. It’s also important to locate items specifically referred to in the Will.
• Identify any debts/loans due to or from the deceased.
• Identify any gifts made by the deceased in the previous seven years.
*At Old Mill we have a dedicated team that can help with this. Please contact your adviser to discuss in more detail.
Seek professional assistance
Consider consulting professionals for complex matters:
Estate Administrator - For financial aspects of the executors’ responsibilities. See Old Mill’s Executorship & Estate Administration brochure.
Financial Adviser - For estate planning or tax issues, and to plan how best to deal with the estate after probate is granted.
Solicitor - For legal concerns.
Bereavement Counsellor - For emotional support during the grieving process.
“Thank you so much for the work you have undertaken in administering Angela’s estate –I had no idea of the complexity of matters.”
Support Groups
Marie Curie – Bereavement support directory
AtaLoss.org
In your area – Compassionate Friends
MuchLoved – Bereavement support organisations
National Bereavement Alliance
Contact
Chippenham
+44 (0)1225 701210
Exeter
+44 (0)1392 214635
Ilminster
+44 (0)1460 259852
Wells
+44 (0)1749 343366
Yeovil
+44 (0)1935 426181
Please take a moment to read this important information
Executorship will be provided by Old Mill Trust Corporation Limited.
Estate Administration service will be provided by Old Mill Accountancy Limited.
Financial Planning and investment management services will be provided by Old Mill Financial Planning Limited. The registered office for these companies is Maltravers House, Petters Way, Yeovil, Somerset BA20 1SH.
