BRITS could be sitting on an inherited fortune they didn’t know about – check to see if you’re due a windfall.
The Government has released an updated list of the unclaimed estates which could hold a sizeable sum for any relatives.
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Recently added names include Joyce Allen who died in Dorchester, Dorset, on November 23, this year.
Also included is Natasha Elizabeth Anderson who passed away on September 23, 2022, in Egham, Surrey.
Sylvia Ivy Datson has also been recently included. She died on November 22, 2022, in Kenton, London.
The list also includes a number of historic cases which are still outstanding.
The estate of John Abrahams, who died in Camden, London, on July 29, 1995, has still not been claimed.
Similarly, still unclaimed is the estate of Eleanor Adams, who died on January 9, 1994 in Southampton, Hampshire.
Another historic case, is that of Mahmood Ahmed, who died on April 9, 2012 in Hammersmith, London.
In total, there are more than 6,600 unclaimed estates and the full list can be found here.
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If you are looking for a particular estate you can search by using Ctrl-F in your browser, text editor or spreadsheet application.
Anyone who thinks they may be able to make a claim should initially check their entitlement.
The order of priority is:
- husband, wife or civil partner
- children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and so on
- mother or father
- brothers or sisters who share both the same mother and father, or their children (nieces and nephews)
- half brothers or sisters or their children (nieces and nephews of the half blood or their children). ‘Half ’ means they share only one parent with the deceased
- grandparents
- uncles and aunts or their children (first cousins or their descendants)
- half uncles and aunts or their children (first cousins of the half blood or their children). ‘Half’ means they only share one grandparent with the deceased, not both
If you are, for example, a first cousin of the deceased, you would only be entitled to share in the estate if there are no relatives above you in the order of entitlement, for example, a niece or nephew.
If an entitled relative survived the deceased but has since died, that relative’s personal representative (the person legally entitled to deal with their estate) must make a claim to the deceased person’s estate.
Claims will be accepted, generally, within 12 years from the date that the administration of the estate was completed and interest will be paid on the money held.
Anyone who thinks they are entitled to claim an estate, the first step is to send a family tree which shows how you are related to the person who has died, and include the dates of birth, marriage and death of all those on the tree.
If it appears that you may be entitled to claim the estate, you will then be asked you to supply documentary evidence that proves your entitlement.
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