Peace of mind for executors and beneficiaries:
On this page, you will find a lot of useful information to help you arrange Missing Beneficiary Insurance in the UK.
If you already know what insurance you need, you can click 'Get a Quote'. We will use the information you provide to obtain a quotation from our underwriting partner, CLS Property Insights, who underwrites Missing Beneficiary Insurance on behalf of Great Lakes Insurance SE.
If you have questions on the cover you should find they are answered on this page. If not, start a chat or contact us. You can click on any of the items in 'Contents' to jump to the section that interests you.
Missing beneficiary indemnity insurance is an important consideration for executors, administrators and beneficiaries. It will protect them should a missing beneficiary claim a financial liability against the estate after it is distributed.
Insurance can be purchased where a Beneficiary is either:
Known to exist but was missing; or
Unknown when the estate was distributed.
Examples of scenarios where this could happen are:
A beneficiary is recorded in a will or a genealogist report but their location is unknown; or
no one involved in administering the estate knew about the missing beneficiary.
Missing beneficiary insurance covers:
The legal defence costs associated with the challenge by the missing beneficiary;
The payment of damages and money owed to Beneficiaries if their legal challenge is successful;
Any other costs incurred by the insured with the prior consent of the insurer.
In the absence of insurance, these costs would need to be funded by the executors or administrators of the estate. If the missing beneficiary's legal challenge is successful, the beneficiaries may also be required to repay their share to the estate so it can be redistributed.
This is why anyone involved in the administration of an estate, should consider missing beneficiary insurance.
The policy can be purchased in isolation or it can be combined with a missing will insurance policy to fully protect the executors and the estate.
The cost of missing beneficiary insurance can also be reclaimed as an estate expense.
Missing beneficiary insurance should be considered when:
The estate is large. The larger the estate, the more likely it is that there will be beneficiaries who are difficult to locate.
The estate is complex such as it involves businesses or trusts, which may make the estate more difficult to distribute fairly.
The beneficiaries are young or elderly may make them more difficult to locate.
The executor or administrator is inexperienced as this could make it more likely a beneficiary is missed.
If you have any questions about missing beneficiary insurance, please start an online chat or Contact Us.
If there aren’t funds in the estate to pay for the insurance protection upfront, you and the beneficiaries don’t need to worry.
Insuristic customers can fund the cost of any of our Probate Insurance Policies with our partner, FSL Finance.
The loan is simple to arrange, with 90% of applications being accepted immediately.
There are no arrangement fees or early repayment charges.
Once a loan is approved, the money is paid to Insuristic to finance your insurance policies. You will then need to pay FSL Finance a monthly amount until the loan is repaid.
If you need cover before the loan is repaid, we can help you. Instructions of what to do in this scenario will be provided in your quotation.
You can find out more or start an application on our Probate Loans page.
A missing beneficiary indemnity insurance policy contains clauses you must comply with before buying a policy. For example:
Please ensure that a comprehensive genealogy report and family tree have been produced. You will need to provide copies when you request a quotation. Visit our Probate Genealogy page to find a professional genealogist or learn more.
A specialist provider researching at least three generations must produce and verify these reports. The reports should confirm that no potential missing beneficiaries exist and that no further investigations are required.
If a known beneficiary may be entitled to a share of the estate, you must confirm that they cannot be traced despite your investigations before the start of the policy.
You will also need to confirm that none of the people insured on the policy are aware of any other party having an interest in the estate who is not benefiting from it at distribution.
Lastly, if a Statutory Section 27 Notice has been placed, you must confirm no unknown beneficiaries have come forward. You can also buy Section 27 Indemnity Insurance from Insuristic.
So, before you request a missing beneficiary insurance quote, you should appoint a professional to conduct a genealogy search.
If you receive a claim on missing beneficiary insurance you must adhere to all the claims conditions listed in the policy.
Failure to do this could mean the insurer rejects your claim, or they could reduce the value the policy pays out if the breach of conditions increases the value of the loss.
You should ensure you read and understand all of the policy conditions listed in the policy.
Here are some pointers on what you should do in the event of a claim:
You should never tell a third party about the existence of this policy.
If there are circumstances that might cause a claim, you must tell the insurer in writing as soon as possible. You should also provide the insurer with as much information and documentation as you can.
Don't incur any costs relating to a claim without first consulting your insurer
Never admit liability or offer to pay or settle with someone else. You should refer the matter to your insurers claims team.
Pass all correspondence and requests for meetings to your insurer's claims team.
For full details of your claims conditions, you must read your policy wording or speak to the insurer's claims team for guidance.
An Escalator Clause can help you avoid under insurance as it increases the limit of indemnity by 5% each year from the inception of the policy.
Imagine if a missing beneficiary indemnity insurance claim was made against the estate 5 years after distribution and the Estate's value was £300,000. If the value of the Estate at the end of the 5 year was now worth £382,884 (based on a 5% growth each year), the administers would be liable for the shortfall of £82,884. This is because the Limit of Indemnity was set at £300,000.
If the Escalate Clause had been included for a small increase in premium at the outset, there would have been no additional liability as the Limit of Indemnity would have increased each year to cover the Estates increase in value.
The cost of missing beneficiary insurance varies depending on the size of the estate and the number of beneficiaries. However, the cost is typically very small compared to the potential liability that you could face if a beneficiary comes forward after the estate has been distributed.
This will vary depending on the insurer. Some policies provide cover for 6 or 10 years.
The insurer Insuristic works with provides a policy that is in perpetuity, so you will always have a cover. This should provide sufficient peace of mind to the executors, administrators, and beneficiaries.
As an executor or personal representative, it is your responsibility to ensure the estate and the beneficiaries are adequately insured.
You should be considering the following types of insurance (click the links to go to the relevant page):
We have written a guide to Executor Insurance, which explains the need for these types of policies. You can find out more here: https://insuristic.co.uk/executor-insurance/
This depends. If the beneficiary was unknown to the executors, a claim can occur at any point. This is why we offer an insurance policy that runs in perpetuity.
If you are looking to insure against a claim from a known missing beneficiary, and a genealogist can't track them down, then they have 12 years to claim against the estate (from the date of the Grant of Probate). We can arrange insurance in these circumstances provided you have a genealogy report evidencing every attempt has been made to contact them.
Hi, I'm Rob, CEO and Founder of Insuristic. My mission is to make insurance easier to understand and buy online.
I hold an Advanced Diploma in Insurance (ACII) which demonstrates I have a solid technical understanding of Insurance and have committed to continuous professional development. I am also a member of the Chartered Insurance Institute and hold the a Chartered Insurance Broker status.
Over the last 27 years, I have worked for insurers, insurance brokers and insurance technology businesses, specialising in product, sales and marketing.
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Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.
Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.
Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.
Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.
Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.
Please Note: Our broking team at SJL Insurance will need to talk to you to discuss your requirements. This is an advised service.
