After a death, someone has to tell dozens of organisations, find every account, pay the bills and account for every penny, usually while grieving. This kit turns that into steps you can follow and a record you can show to anyone who asks. It is for executors, administrators and the family members helping them, in England and Wales.
- The tracker (Excel): a roadmap of 37 steps; a notification log with follow-up dates (the organisations Tell Us Once contacts are listed for you); a call log; document and reference records; an asset and debt register whose settled amounts come from the estate account; an estate account with a running balance; legacies and residue shares, with what is paid and still due; and a reconciliation with twelve checks (the last one for the record) that tie it all together. Key dates (registration, Tell Us Once, Bereavement Support Payment, Inheritance Tax, the Gazette claim period) are worked out from the dates you enter.
- Ten letters (Word): plain letters to a bank, a pension provider, a utility or subscription, an insurer, an employer, a landlord or care home and a creditor; a request for date-of-death values; a letter sending the grant; and a polite follow-up. A4 and US Letter.
- The guide (PDF, 21 pages): the first days, the first weeks and the estate; Tell Us Once and what it does not cover; probate (when each organisation decides it is needed, who can apply, the fee); Inheritance Tax reference figures and deadlines; distribution and final accounts; where to get help. Every rule is dated and sourced to GOV.UK and other official pages, read on 27 October 2026.
A worked example follows the fictional estate of Eleanor Whitfield, who died on Tuesday 5 January 2027, as it stood on 15 September 2027: £327,373.24 collected, £12,381.20 paid out in debts, costs and the funeral, two legacies paid, and an interim payment to each of her two children, leaving £32,492.04 in the estate account, exactly what is still due to them.
If the person kept a SEV UK Household Continuity File, its registers give you a head start.
Who it is for
- Executors named in a will, and administrators where there is no will, in England and Wales.
- Adult children, partners and relatives helping with the paperwork after a death.
- Anyone who wants a clear audit trail of the estate's money to share with the beneficiaries.
Contents
Part — What it is
Excel tracker — 12 sheets, blank and worked example
Word letters — 10 letters, each in A4 and US Letter, with the fonts
PDF guide — 21 pages, in four editions
Sheet — What it does
Start Here — How it works, the scope, your privacy, where to get support, your licence
Overview — Progress on the roadmap, notifications, key dates and the money, at a glance
Estate Details — The person, the people dealing with the estate, the dates as they happen, and the key dates worked out
Roadmap — 37 steps in three stages, with who is doing each and when it was done
Notifications — Every organisation told: when, how, the reference, documents sent, outcome and follow-up date
Call Log — Each call: who you spoke to, what was agreed, the next step
Documents — Where each document is, its reference, and who has a copy
Assets and Debts — Everything owned and owed, the value at the date of death, how it passes, and what was settled
Estate Account — Every payment in and out, with a running balance and a check on each line
Distribution — Legacies and residue shares: entitlement, paid, possessions taken, still due
Reconciliation — The estate account in summary, and twelve checks that tie every sheet together
Rates and Sources — Every rule and figure used, with its official source and the date it was read
Letter — To
L01 — Bank or building society
L02 — Pension provider
L03 — Utility, phone, broadband or subscription
L04 — Insurer
L05 — Valuation request
L06 — Landlord, housing association or care home
L07 — Employer
L08 — Credit card, loan or other creditor
L09 — Sending the grant
L10 — Follow-up
