Deceased Persons property

Melmar

Hi, sorry if this is the wrong forum but I wasn’t sure were to post.
I have a reclusive Uncle that has passed away. My contact with him was limited to a Christmas card once a year and that was how he liked it. Any further contact would be rejected.
Sadly he has passed away and I found out from heir hunters touting for business.
I need to find out if he left a will. The coroner has advised me to search the property. The police have sealed the property and don’t seem to know who has the responsibility to let me look for the will.

Is there anyone out there who can advise me on how to gain access or find out if there is a will via another method.

Many thanks

PasturesNew

What is the family makeup?
Did he ever marry/have kids (I assume no).
Does have surviving siblings?
Does he have other nieces/nephews?

Do you think he has "an estate", things of value, is the house his, etc?
Do you think he was in serious debt/has nothing?

If he has money/an estate, somebody needs to apply for probate. It doesn't matter who does that, but who else COULD do that?

If he has debts you need to distance yourself from it entirely.

I presume you're after photos/paperwork and "knick knacks" in the first instance?

Brynsam

Have you asked the coroner, given that he was the one who advised you to search the property?

getmore4less

Catch 22 the legal owners or the administrator have the right to enter.

Without a will with named executors it needs a grant..

In practice the one with accees to the keys just goes in or let's people in.

Rented or owned?

Why are the police involved?

nom_de_plume

getmore4less wrote: »

Why are the police involved?

I'm going to guess that entry was forced into the property and it was subsequently made secure by the Police's contractor.

In the OP's boots (who I'm assuming is one of the closest relatives and has the approval of other family members) I'd be inclined to let myself in (perhaps with the aid of a locksmith), fit new locks as necessary and go about conducting a search.

SeniorSam

Do be very careful about the last advice. If the Police have sealed the property, you could find yourself in serious difficulty taking the matter into your own hands.

Why have you not gone to the police for information, as there would be a notice on the property advising you to do that.

If heir hunters are involved, then it would seem that they are seeking to help find beneficiaries, of which you may be one. They only get paid by being able to conclude their investigations, but if you don't want the benefit of their expertise because you feel that they are not worth their fees, it's up to you. Tyt the police in the first instance, but don't go changing locks.

unforeseen

If he has passed away recently (in the last year) then the heir hunters would not have got his name from the Bona Vacantia as it is too fresh to consider it as not claimed.

This sounds like somebody has hired them to do this.

getmore4less

unforeseen wrote: »

If he has passed away recently (in the last year) then the heir hunters would not have got his name from the Bona Vacantia as it is too fresh to consider it as not claimed.

This sounds like somebody has hired them to do this.

It's a myth that estates don't get onto the BV list for a long time.

Estates hit BV as soon as someone notifies them(councels, hospitals and banks quite common) it can be days from DOD, a lot are a few weeks.

HH also get tip offs when there may be an estate of interest that don't get referred.

Once on they often get removed quite quickly as relatives are found.

Looks like BV have updated their interface to the list so I don't have to download and analyse like last time(you can still download the CSV)

https://www.bonavacantialist.co.uk/search?UnclaimedUsers_sort=death_date.desc

on the first page there is one that took 16 days
died 23rd Feb(Sat) added 11 March(Mon)
page 2 added 14/01/2019 DOD 01/01/2019


A previous thread on how BV works from 2 years ago(was it that long ago)

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5602040/contract-with-heir-hunter-query

I am not going to do an update but from then the key data for estates hitting the list is in post #23.

nom_de_plume

SeniorSam wrote: »

Do be very careful about the last advice. If the Police have sealed the property, you could find yourself in serious difficulty taking the matter into your own hands.

I'm guessing the word 'sealed' is misleading in this instance and it's not a crime scene, rather a property made safe following a forced entry. Perhaps OP can clarify?

unforeseen

getmore4less wrote: »

It's a myth that estates don't get onto the BV list for a long time.

Estates hit BV as soon as someone notifies them(councels, hospitals and banks quite common) it can be days from DOD, a lot are a few weeks.

HH also get tip offs when there may be an estate of interest that don't get referred.

Once on they often get removed quite quickly as relatives are found.

Looks like BV have updated their interface to the list so I don't have to download and analyse like last time(you can still download the CSV)

https://www.bonavacantialist.co.uk/search?UnclaimedUsers_sort=death_date.desc

on the first page there is one that took 16 days
died 23rd Feb(Sat) added 11 March(Mon)
page 2 added 14/01/2019 DOD 01/01/2019


A previous thread on how BV works from 2 years ago(was it that long ago)

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5602040/contract-with-heir-hunter-query

I am not going to do an update but from then the key data for estates hitting the list is in post #23.

I ever said that it wouldn't appear on the Bv list, I was saying that heir hunters probably wouldn't touch it because it was too "new"

getmore4less

unforeseen wrote: »

I ever said that it wouldn't appear on the Bv list, I was saying that heir hunters probably wouldn't touch it because it was too "new"

They are the ones they go after, get in quick and claim the spoils if any.