What happens to...

Quick reference: the most common assets

The table below gives a brief summary of what happens to the most common asset types. Each links to a full guide with the detail you'll need for that specific asset.

Understanding the estate

Everything the person owned – their money, property, possessions, investments – forms part of their estate. So do their debts. The estate has to be administered before assets can be distributed to beneficiaries.

If there is a will, the person named as executor is responsible for administering the estate. If there is no will, the estate passes under the rules of intestacy, and a close relative can apply to become the administrator. In either case, the person responsible is called the personal representative.

For larger estates, the personal representative usually needs a legal document from the court called a grant of representation – more commonly known as probate (or letters of administration if there is no will). Without this, most banks and financial institutions will not release funds. The gov.uk probate guidance explains who needs to apply and how.

How to find out what assets someone had

Before you can administer an estate, you need to know what's in it. People don't always keep tidy financial records. There are several free services that can help.

• My Lost Account – a free service run by UK Finance, the Building Societies Association, and NS&I that searches for dormant bank accounts, building society accounts, and Premium Bonds. It is the first place to check for forgotten savings.
• Pension Tracing Service – a free government service to track down lost workplace and personal pensions using the name of a previous employer.
• Death Notification Service – notifies multiple UK banks simultaneously of a death, which reduces the number of separate calls you need to make.
• HMRC Bereavement Helpline (0300 200 3300) – can provide tax records, PAYE information, and information about self-assessment filings, which can help identify income sources and therefore likely asset types.
• Original documents – bank statements, pension letters, share certificates, and policy documents are often in a filing cabinet, email inbox, or digital storage. Online banking login details may be stored in a password manager.

Locating all assets before applying for probate is important: undervaluing an estate can trigger HMRC enquiries and penalties. If you are uncertain, a probate solicitor or estate administration specialist can carry out a more thorough asset search on your behalf.

Bank accounts and savings

What happens to a bank account depends on whether it was held in one name or two.

Sole accounts are frozen as soon as the bank is notified of the death. The money does not disappear – it becomes part of the estate and will be released once probate is granted, or directly for smaller amounts under the bank's small estates threshold (which varies by institution, typically between £15,000 and £50,000). You will need to provide a death certificate and, eventually, proof of your authority to deal with the estate.

Joint accounts continue to operate. The surviving account holder can still access funds and make payments. The bank will update the account to a sole account in the survivor's name, usually on presentation of a death certificate.

For both types, notify the bank early – even if you cannot access the funds immediately. This stops direct debits and standing orders drawing down money that should be preserved for the estate. Full details, including bank-by-bank probate thresholds, are in our bank accounts guide.

ISAs

ISAs do not disappear when the account holder dies – but they stop being open for new contributions. From the date of death, the account becomes what HMRC calls a "continuing account of a deceased investor". This means it keeps its tax-free status for income tax and capital gains tax for up to 3 years and 1 day after death, or until the estate is fully administered, whichever is earlier.

The ISA value forms part of the estate for inheritance tax purposes and usually requires probate before it can be transferred or cashed in.

Surviving spouse or civil partner: They receive an Additional Permitted Subscription (APS) allowance equal to the value of the deceased's ISA on death (or at closure, whichever is higher). This is a one-off additional allowance, separate from their own £20,000 annual ISA limit, and must be used within 3 years of the date of death or 180 days after estate administration completes.

Our full ISA guide covers stocks and shares ISAs, cash ISAs, the APS in detail, and what executors need to do.

Premium Bonds

Premium Bonds are held by NS&I and form part of the estate. After death, the bonds remain eligible for prize draws for up to 12 months from the date of death – so it is worth waiting before cashing them in, as a prize could be significant.

After that 12-month window, or once the estate is fully administered, NS&I will pay out the value. For amounts under £5,000, NS&I can usually pay directly to the executor without probate; above that threshold, a grant of probate is normally required. See our Premium Bonds guide for the notification steps.

Shares and investments

Shares and investment accounts held in the deceased's sole name form part of the estate and are frozen against new transactions once the registrar or platform is notified of the death. They cannot be sold or transferred until probate is granted.

Valuing shares for probate: Quoted shares on the London Stock Exchange or AIM are valued at the date of death using the "quarter-up rule" – the lower price plus a quarter of the difference between the lower and higher price on that day. This is the figure that goes on the probate forms.

Capital gains tax: There is no capital gains tax on the increase in value up to the date of death. Beneficiaries inherit the investments at their market value on the date of death – known as the probate value – and any future gain above that is what gets taxed when they eventually sell.

Jointly held shares held as beneficial joint tenants pass automatically to the surviving co-owner, just like joint bank accounts. The executor has no role in their transfer.

Pensions and life insurance

Pensions and life insurance policies are often structured to pass outside the estate – which means they do not go through probate and are not subject to inheritance tax in the same way.

Most workplace and personal pensions allow the scheme member to complete a nomination of beneficiaries form, which tells the pension trustees who they wish to receive any lump sum. The trustees are not legally bound by this, but they follow it in most cases. Because the money passes to the trustees first and then to nominees, it typically falls outside the estate for inheritance tax purposes. Contact the pension provider directly as soon as possible – they will stop payments immediately and assess whether a dependant's pension or a lump sum death benefit is payable.

If you cannot find the pension provider's details, the government's free Pension Tracing Service can locate lost workplace and personal pensions using the employer's name.

Life insurance policies work similarly if they are written in trust. If the policy is in trust, the payout goes directly to the named beneficiaries without going through the estate. If it is not in trust, the payout forms part of the estate and may be subject to inheritance tax. The HMRC inheritance tax guidance covers how different assets are treated.

See our guides on pensions and life insurance for the full process.

Property and mortgages

What happens to a property depends on how it was owned.

• Joint tenancy: The property automatically passes to the surviving owner by right of survivorship, regardless of what the will says. The surviving owner notifies the Land Registry with a death certificate to update the title.
• Tenancy in common: Each owner holds a defined share, which passes according to their will (or intestacy rules if there is no will). Probate will usually be required before the share can be transferred or the property sold.
• Sole ownership: The property forms part of the estate and cannot be sold or transferred without probate.

If there is an outstanding mortgage, the lender must be notified. The mortgage does not disappear – it remains a charge on the property and must be dealt with as part of the estate administration. Some mortgages include mortgage protection insurance that pays off the balance on death; check the policy documents. Our guides on property and mortgages cover this in full.

Debts and direct debits

Debts do not simply disappear when someone dies. They become a liability of the estate, and must be paid from the estate's assets before anything is distributed to beneficiaries. If the estate does not have enough to cover all debts, it is said to be insolvent – in which case there is a legal order of priority for who gets paid first. Family members are not personally liable for a deceased person's debts, unless they were a joint debtor or guarantor on the account.

The one significant exception to this is student loans, which are written off entirely on death. All UK government student loan plans – Plan 1, Plan 2, Plan 4, Plan 5, and Postgraduate loans – are cancelled. The estate owes nothing.

Direct debits and standing orders on sole accounts will stop once the account is frozen. However, if payments are still going out of a joint account, you will need to cancel them manually. Contact each company separately, or consider using the Tell Us Once service for government and council payments.

Digital assets

Digital assets present one of the more complex challenges in estate administration, because the rules vary so widely depending on what the asset is.

• Email and social media accounts are owned by the platform, not the user. Most providers will memorialise or close accounts on request, but will not hand over access – even to next of kin. Facebook and Google have specific legacy contact and inactive account processes.
• Streaming and software subscriptions are licences, not owned assets, and have no transferable value. Cancel them to stop ongoing charges – see our subscriptions guide.
• Cryptocurrency is different: it is a genuine financial asset that forms part of the estate. Without the private keys or seed phrase, it cannot be accessed by anyone – not even an exchange. If keys cannot be found, the value is effectively lost. Always record wallet details and access methods in a secure location.
• Photographs and files in cloud storage are generally inaccessible after death unless the executor has the login credentials, as terms of service typically prohibit account sharing.

Our digital assets guide covers what to do with each type of online account and how to handle cryptocurrency in an estate.

Business assets

What happens to a business on the owner's death depends on its structure.

• Sole traders: The business ceases to exist as a legal entity on death. The assets and liabilities pass to the estate. Contracts cannot be novated without the other party's agreement, and HMRC must be informed.
• Limited companies: The company itself continues to exist, as it is a separate legal entity. The deceased director's shares pass via their estate. A form TM01 must be filed at Companies House within 14 days to remove the deceased as a director.
• Partnerships: Depends on the partnership agreement. Without a specific clause, the death of a partner may dissolve the partnership. If the partnership continues, the deceased's share forms part of their estate.

Business assets may also attract Business Property Relief (BPR), which can reduce or eliminate inheritance tax on qualifying interests in a trading business. The HMRC guidance on Business Property Relief sets out which assets qualify. Our business guide covers the practical steps.

Phone contracts, utilities, and subscriptions

Mobile phone contracts, broadband, energy accounts, and streaming subscriptions all need to be cancelled or transferred. As a rule, you are not personally liable for the remaining contract costs – these are debts of the estate – but you should notify each company promptly to stop further charges accumulating.

Most providers have a dedicated bereavement team and will close accounts on receipt of a death certificate. Some may waive early termination fees; it is worth asking. For specific guidance on contacting individual companies – including phone numbers and what documents to have ready – see the company notification guides.

Telling organisations

The Tell Us Once service lets you notify multiple government departments – HMRC, the DWP, the Passport Office, and the DVLA – in a single step. You get the reference number when you register the death. Use it: it stops pension and benefit overpayments, which are a headache to recover later. See our full Tell Us Once guide for the complete list of organisations it covers.

For banks, insurers, telecoms, and other private organisations, you will need to contact each one separately. The guides in who to notify when someone dies walk through each notification individually. If you are entitled to bereavement support payment as a surviving spouse or civil partner, see the bereavement benefits section.

The guides below cover each asset type in detail – what the rules are, what steps to take, and what to expect from the process.