By Ben Furlong, Managing Director, Estatesearch
As a leading legal technology provider, Estatesearch develops innovative solutions that improve efficiency and reduce risk for private client professionals, especially when it comes to identifying unknown assets in estates.
A Comprehensive Asset and Liability Search
Our Financial Profile Service is a detailed asset and liability search, ordered via a free, secure online portal. We contact over 150 organisations and search more than 450 companies and brands—including banks, investment managers, pension providers, insurers, and share registrars—to help identify any accounts or policies held by the deceased.
This comprehensive search enables solicitors to make targeted follow-up enquiries when a profile match is confirmed.
Helping Legal Professionals Discover Hidden Estate Value
Emma Spicer, Assistant Estate Administration Team Manager at Irwin Mitchell, explains:
“Where we are appointed as executors, we use Estatesearch to assist with asset discovery… it helps speed up the asset discovery side of the process.”
She cites a case where a council had deputyship but missed a bank account worth £6,000—only discovered through our service. This underscores how unknown assets can be missed even when representatives believe they have complete information.
The Power of our Financial Profile Service
James O’Toole, Solicitor at John Fowlers Solicitors, praises the additional features in the Financial Profile Premium:
“Estatesearch’s Financial Profile search includes AML and Identity Trace, Liability Search and Financial Asset Search. In the Financial Profile Premium, it also includes Company Directorships and an Unclaimed Asset Search that includes up to 40 additional pension and insurance providers to help locate forgotten accounts, policies, and shareholdings within 30 days.
“Several clients have been surprised and pleased when the search has discovered unknown accounts. These have all contained relatively small amounts of money which have not impacted the IHT position. However, the searches demonstrate the importance of due diligence for us as a firm, as unravelling the situation in relation to IHT if a substantial asset was discovered at a later date, would be highly complex.”
While many accounts uncovered contain modest sums, their discovery is crucial to due diligence. If left unidentified, even small unknown assets can complicate inheritance tax (IHT) assessments and estate administration.
Over £1.5 Million in Unknown Assets Uncovered
As of December 2023, Estatesearch helped uncover over £1.5 million in unknown assets—and that’s from fewer than 1% of the total orders processed that year. With our client base growing by 30% since then, the figure is undoubtedly far higher now.
Examples include:
- A £265,000 life insurance policy found by WSP Solicitors.
- £190,000 in investments located for Archer Rusby—on an estate originally believed to be worth only £20,000.
- A £38,000 investment uncovered by Ewart Price that changed the estate’s IHT position.
- Six bank accounts and an annuity worth hundreds of thousands identified by Harper Macleod.
Why Uncovering Unknown Assets Is Crucial
Correctly identifying estate assets and liabilities is vital to ensuring proper distribution and fulfilling legal obligations. Failing to find assets can lead to:
- Negligence claims
- HMRC penalties for underreported IHT
- Additional administration fees
With the increasing shift to online banking, tracking accounts and policies is more difficult than ever. Our research reveals 38% of people don’t know the whereabouts of all their loved ones’ accounts, potentially contributing to the estimated £200 billion in unclaimed and unknown assets in the UK.
A Practical Solution for Legal Firms
The Financial Profile Service provides a clear, auditable report within 30 working days. It gives peace of mind to beneficiaries and ensures solicitors can demonstrate the steps taken to meet due diligence standards.
A Full Suite of Estate Administration Tools
In addition to the Financial Profile Search, Estatesearch offers:
- Trustee Notices
- Overseas & UK Bankruptcy Searches
- Unoccupied Property Insurance
- Early Distribution Insurance
- Share Valuations
There are no registration or subscription fees—clients only pay for the disbursements they need, when they need them.
Start your Estatesearch journey today, register for your free account.
Originally published in Today’s Wills and Probate | 6th June 2025 – https://todayswillsandprobate.co.uk/addressing-the-issue-of-unknown-assets/