How to Find a Will After Someone Dies in the UK

Where Wills Are Usually Stored

• At home — drawer, filing cabinet, or safe. Most common location.
• With a solicitor — many solicitors store Wills free of charge for clients
• Bank safe deposit box — less common now but still used
• HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) — Wills can be deposited with the Probate Registry for safekeeping for a one-off fee
• National Will Register (Certainty) — commercial Will registration service

How to Search the Probate Registry

Once a Grant of Probate has been issued, the Will becomes a public document. You can search online at gov.uk/search-will-probate for free. The search covers grants issued in England and Wales, with records going back to 1858. If the estate has not yet entered probate, the Will will not appear here.

What If No Will Can Be Found?

If no Will is located after a thorough search, the estate is treated as intestate. The closest relative under a set order, starting with a spouse or civil partner, applies for Letters of Administration rather than a Grant of Probate. The estate is then distributed under the Intestacy Rules — not according to any verbal wishes the deceased may have expressed.

Can a Lost Will Be Reconstructed?

If a Will existed but cannot be found, the court can sometimes admit a copy into probate — but the presumption is that a Will that cannot be found was destroyed intentionally by the testator (i.e., revoked). This is very difficult to overcome without strong evidence.

You Have Found a Will: What to Check Next

Finding a document is only the first step. Before anyone relies on it, the executors should check a few things:

• Is it the original? The Probate Registry needs the signed original, not a photocopy or scan. Keep it exactly as found: do not remove staples or clips, as marks on the paper can raise questions about whether pages were attached.
• Is it the latest version? Look for a later Will or a codicil (a formal amendment). A newer Will normally revokes earlier ones.
• Was it properly signed? It should be signed by the person who died and by two witnesses (Wills Act 1837, s.9). If a witness or their spouse is named as a beneficiary, that gift usually fails (s.15).
• Did a later marriage or divorce change things? A marriage or civil partnership after the Will was made cancels it unless it was made in contemplation of that marriage (s.18). A final divorce treats the former spouse as having died (s.18A).

If the Will passes these checks, the named executors can apply for probate. The application fee is £526 for estates over £5,000. Our grant of probate guide explains the next stage.