When you’ve lost someone close to you, organising their finances can seem daunting. We’re here to provide practical help to take you through the process from start to finish.
Any charges will be taken from the share dealing account where possible, however where there isn’t an available balance to pay some, or all of the charges, we’ll contact the executor by letter requesting payment by cheque.
If you’d like to pay any of the charges by cheque please make this payable to Halifax Share Dealing Limited and send to the following address:
Halifax Share Dealing
Legal Department
Lovell Park Road
Leeds
LS1 1NS
We understand that some of the language or legal phrasing on this page may not make sense to everyone, so we’ve explained these in a little more detail to help.
Any property or possession which has a cash value.
The laws relating to inheritance and property in Scotland are very different to other parts of the United Kingdom (apart from the taxes that need to be paid on estates). in England this is called probate, in Scotland this is called ‘confirmation’.
In Scotland, a ‘small estate’ is classed as an estate with a total value of less than £36,000. These can be dealt with by private individuals (such as yourself or family members), although the requirement for confirmation is decided by the company you are dealing with.
If you need some more support then the staff at the Sheriff Clerk’s office will be able to help personal applicants with the necessary forms and confirmation once all the information needed has been gathered.
If the estate is larger than £36,000 and, especially if a property is involved, we recommend the use of a solicitor.
A document which confirms the value of the remaining cash and/or stock held within the account at the time of death. The valuation will help the executor to determine if a Grant of Probate or Small Estates Form is required.
A certified copy of the entry made in the Death Register. The registrar will be able, for a fee, to provide a number of certified copies to save time when you’re registering claims with various companies.
Distribution of the assets refers to the process of selling assets held within a share dealing account as instructed by the named executor of the account.
Distribution of the assets can also refer to the executor’s choice to transfer assets held to an account in their own name or the withdrawal of assets onto a certificate.
As executor or administrator (executor-nominate or dative in Scotland) you may have responsibility for one or more of the following:
A grant of probate is an official document issued by the Probate Registry which the executors may need to administer the estate. This document will only be issued once the Probate Registry has received the necessary application forms from the named executor, the will’s validity has been checked, and any owed taxes are paid.
If the estate is small, or if it’s held in joint names and passes automatically to the surviving owner (as is often the case with married couples), you may not need to apply for probate.
If there’s a will, you’ll need to get a Grant of Probate; if there isn’t a will, you’ll need to get Letters of Administration (in Scotland this is called a Grant of Confirmation).
Probate is the process you go through if you’re handling the estate of someone who has died.
Identifying what’s in the estate and its value.
Completing the necessary application forms for both the probate registry and Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
Gathering the assets and dealing with any property, paying any debts and completing the legal processes to cover you against late claims in the estate.
The same application process has to be made by the administrator of an intestate estate, where there is no will. The grant issued in this situation is called ‘letters of administration’. If there is a will but no executor for any reason, the grant is called ‘letters of administration with will annexed’.
The responsibilities include making sure all taxes and debts are paid before any money can be given to beneficiaries (the people nominated to benefit from the will) and that in general the estate is managed in a way that best serves the beneficiaries.
When a person dies without leaving a will they are described as dying intestate. Certain legal rules called the intestacy rules will determine how the person’s estate is distributed.
A deal to buy or sell an investment such as shares.
When an account holder passes away the first thing we’ll need from you is an original or certified copy of the death certificate.
Ready to send the certificate to us?
Once you’re ready to send the certificate to us, please send it to:
Legal Department
Halifax Share Dealing
Lovell Park Road
Leeds
LS1 1NS
Once we’ve received the death certificate we will update the account and issue a letter to the account’s registered address requesting a Grant of Probate (in Scotland this is called a Certificate of Confirmation) or an Executor Authority Form.
This letter will include:
If you’ve requested for us to sell the investments
This will usually be done within 72 hours of receiving the instruction form. Upon settlement in the market we will arrange for the money to be sent by cheque to the executor named on the Executor Authority Form within approximately 10 working days.
If you’ve requested for us to transfer the investments
If you have sent a request to transfer stock to another Halifax Share Dealing account, this usually takes up to 10 working days to complete. Withdrawing stock onto a certificate can take considerably longer.
Please note, you will be unable to transfer shares, withdraw available funds or the proceeds of a sale until the necessary identity and verification checks have been completed. Information about these verification checks can be found on the bereavement guide that will be sent to you in the post.
We will attempt to complete these checks electronically however if this isn’t possible, you’ll need to provide original or certified copies of documents from the below list. You will need to send us one document from the proof of identity list and one document from the proof of address list.
All documents must be current as we cannot accept expired documentation.
Or:
Or:
All documents must be current as we cannot accept expired documentation.
Utility bill (dated within the last 6 months)
Or:
Council tax demand letter / statement (dated within the last 12 months)
Or:
Please note, we cannot accept any of the below if you’re also using it for proof of identity.
Halifax Share Dealing Limited. Registered in England and Wales no. 3195646. Registered Office: Trinity Road, Halifax, West Yorkshire, HX1 2RG. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, 12 Endeavour Square, London, E20 1JN under registration number 183332. A Member of the London Stock Exchange and an HM Revenue & Customs Approved ISA Manager.