Probate Letters: Who Do I Need to Contact?

As executor or administrator of an estate, one of your first responsibilities is notifying every organisation the deceased had a relationship with. You need to gather information about assets and debts, and ensure ongoing payments are stopped to prevent money leaving the estate unnecessarily.

Before you write to anyone: gather your documents

You will need certified copies of the death certificate to send to organisations that require written notification. Order several at registration (£11 each). Have the deceased’s full name, last address, date of birth, date of death, and National Insurance number ready before you begin.

The Tell Us Once service

When you register the death, the registrar should offer you the Tell Us Once service. This allows you to notify a range of central and local government agencies in a single step, including HMRC, the Department for Work and Pensions, DVLA, and local council services.

Who else do I need to contact?

Banks and building societies

Contact every bank and building society where the deceased held accounts. Ask for confirmation of the balance at the date of death for each account. Many banks have a dedicated bereavement team.

Mortgage and loan providers

Notify the lender as soon as possible. The property remains an asset of the estate but the mortgage debt must be accounted for in the estate valuation.

Investment and pension providers

Contact investment platforms, stockbrokers, and pension providers. For pensions, there is often a lump sum death benefit that may or may not form part of the estate. Ask the provider directly.

Insurance companies

Notify all insurers of any policies the deceased held. A life insurance policy written in trust usually falls outside the estate. One not written in trust may form part of the estate and its value must be included in the IHT400.

HMRC and the state pension

If not covered by Tell Us Once, contact HMRC to request a final income tax calculation. Contact the Pension Service if the deceased was receiving a state pension. Any overpayment after the date of death must be returned.

Utility companies, subscriptions, and direct debits

Notify utility providers, cancel standing orders and direct debits, and close subscription services. These are debts of the estate and should be settled before distribution.

The Gazette statutory notice

Place a notice in The Gazette under the Trustee Act 1925. This protects you against claims from creditors you were unaware of. Once the notice period has passed and the estate is distributed, future creditor claims become the liability of the beneficiaries.

How YouCanDoProbate helps

As you work through the YouCanDoProbate platform, you enter information about each account, asset, and debt. The platform uses this information to auto-generate notification letters addressed to the relevant organisations, ready for you to print, sign, and post.