Executor Has Disappeared

fallen121

Wondering whether anyone on here can advise what happens when someone dies leaving their entire estate to a single person who is not only the sole beneficiary but the sole executor? Asking because said person has disappeared. No-one knows how to contact them, last known address appears to be false, no replies to last known emails and phone numbers.

Probate has never been applied for, no-one has any authority to act in the absence of the executor and the only solicitor was a Court of Protection Officer whose responsibilities ended at point of death. The only thing that has happened is a funeral, which was able to happen at the behest of other relatives courtesy of a pre-paid funeral plan.

No-one else has any authority to act, or any impetus to do so, as getting solicitors involved will not only be wildly expensive (other relatives not domiciled in England and Wales) but will need to be paid upfront and unlikely to be recoverable from the estate as there are no other beneficiaries and the executor (if they ever reappear) is not the sort of person likely to reimburse out of pocket expenses.

House was never put on the market when the deceased was taken into care as Court of Protection solicitors were changed due to solicitor company reorganisation so as far as we know bank accounts remain  open, pensions continue to be paid, utilities still going out via DD, house now no longer maintained as garden and external maintenance seems to have been discontinued, probably due to not been paid for. Some nursing home fees are probably still outstanding as they were awaiting proceeds from sale of house. No-one, not even the Local Authority, can get access to the house as the keys are held by the Court of Protection solicitors who can't release them, pay any outstanding bills due at date of death or provide any information to anyone other than the legal executor. No utility company, bank or other institution will (rightly) do anything without proper legal authority in the form of letters of Probate and the only person legally able to apply for these has disappeared without trace.

Must everyone watch as the house falls down? Because according to everything I have read, no-one is under any obligation to do anything for 30 years, at which point the Local Authority might be able to step in as regards the house. 

elsien

What is your interest in this - if the beneficiary/executor  chooses not act the only people it is really likely to affect are the neighbours adjacent to the property? 

Cairnpapple

Do you think that the executor has deliberately disappeared with no intention of being found, or are they just estranged? If they're just estranged, it may be relatively straightforward and not too expensive for someone with the right databases to find them. 

user1977

fallen121 said:

No-one knows how to contact them, last known address appears to be false, no replies to last known emails and phone numbers.

Is that as far as investigations have gone so far? No tracing agents engaged, any attempts to contact via friends / family, etc?

magicmoneyportaloo

Like elsien said, what's your interest if the sole executor and beneficiary chooses not to act?

A family member of mine died intestate and I was advised not to act as administrator nor represent his estate in any way, as it would have cost me time and money and would have been no benefit to me. So sometimes choosing not to act makes sense, if we are talking about personal interest anyway.

Savvy_Sue

With a death certificate, surely it should be possible for almost anyone to notify pensions / DWP / utilities etc of the death, without making oneself responsible for taking any further action. 

And if a funeral has been held, there must be someone with a death certificate!

Marcon

fallen121 said:

Wondering whether anyone on here can advise what happens when someone dies leaving their entire estate to a single person who is not only the sole beneficiary but the sole executor? Asking because said person has disappeared. No-one knows how to contact them, last known address appears to be false, no replies to last known emails and phone numbers.

This does seem rather a dramatic take on things: the executor has 'disappeared' and the last known address 'appears to be false'.

From what you've said it sounds more like a simple case of the executor can't be traced and the address you have for them is no longer valid (people do move...). Or they could simply have died and if the death occurred abroad, it isn't showing up in UK registries.

The normal route would be an attempt to trace them using a tracing agency.

GDB2222

This link explains what can be done if the property causes a problem, eg derelict etc.

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/unsightly-and-derelict-housing/Unsightly and derelict housing in England