What happens when someone dies without a will (intestacy)
When there's no valid will, the estate is shared under the Intestacy Rules. You can't choose who administers it or who inherits — the law decides. Instead of a Grant of Probate, the family must apply for Letters of Administration.
Unmarried partners receive nothing under intestacy, no matter how long they lived with the deceased. Step-children receive nothing unless they were legally adopted.
Who inherits under the intestacy rules (England & Wales)
The order is fixed in law:
- Spouse/civil partner only (no children): the whole estate
- Spouse + children: spouse gets all personal possessions, the first £322,000, and half the remainder; children share the rest
- Children only (no spouse): split equally between children (or grandchildren if a child has died)
- No spouse or children: parents → siblings → half-siblings → grandparents → aunts and uncles
- No qualifying relatives at all: the estate passes to the Crown (bona vacantia)
How to apply for Letters of Administration
The process mirrors probate but with extra paperwork:
- Register the death and obtain the death certificate
- Value the estate (property, savings, pensions, debts)
- Complete IHT400 if inheritance tax is due, or IHT205/IHT207 for excepted estates
- Submit form PA1A to the Probate Registry with the £273 court fee (estates over £5,000)
- Wait 8–16 weeks for the grant to be issued
- Collect in assets, pay debts and distribute according to the intestacy rules
Common problems with intestate estates
Intestacy makes already-difficult moments harder. We see these issues regularly:
- An unmarried partner is left with nothing, even though the couple owned a home together as tenants in common
- Children inherit at 18 outright — often before they're ready to manage large sums
- Avoidable inheritance tax because no nil-rate band planning was done
- Family disputes over who applies as administrator
- Foreign assets that fall outside English intestacy rules
