Dealing with probate can feel overwhelming, especially when chattels, antiques, or collections are involved. At FEAC Legal, we provide HMRC compliant probate valuations for Grantham families, solicitors, and executors. Whether you’re handling a simple estate or a large rural property, we offer sensitive, timely, and accurate valuations across Lincolnshire.

How Does It Work?

Step 1: Book Your Valuation

For a personal quote or to book a probate valuation service, please get in touch with us.

Phone: 07984 733931

Email: admin@feaclegal.co.uk

Step 2: Schedule Your Valuation

Once your appointment is confirmed, our team of professional valuers will arrive promptly at 9:00 AM on the scheduled day. They will conduct the valuation thoroughly and take the necessary time to ensure an accurate and comprehensive assessment.

Note! We can collect keys if you are unable to attend the property, or, you can post them to our head office.

Step 3: Receive Your Report

Once the valuation at your property is complete, our valuers will return to head office to prepare a detailed probate report. This report will be finalised and emailed to you in PDF format within 5 working days of your initial appointment. You can then print and distribute as many times as needed to the appropriate parties.

Our Probate Services In Grantham

• Full chattels and household contents valuation for probate and inheritance tax
• HMRC Inheritance tax compliant documentation.
• Asset recovery service included.
• Flexible key collection and postal services for clients unable to attend in person, including those abroad or with busy schedules
• We can also offer full house contents clearance.

Why Choose Us?

• We are a family run business who have been operating for over thirty years.
• Our expert valuers have constant training in antique, fine jewellery, and specialist items. Making them the most knowledgable and best in the business.
• We cover the whole of the UK and Scotland.
• We work closely with over eighty solicitors throughout the UK.
• We have never had a report rejected by HMRC.
• We offer transparent, competitive pricing with no hidden fees.

Ready To Get Started?

Contact us today for probate and chattels valuation in Grantham and across Lincolnshire.
Call 07448259106 or email admin@feaclegal.co.uk.

How to Handle Unknown Assets During Probate

Unknown Assets Are a Common Probate Risk

Unknown assets are far more common in probate than most executors expect. They include items that are concealed, stored off-site, undocumented, misunderstood, or simply overlooked. Executors are legally responsible for identifying allestate assets—known or unknown—and for demonstrating that reasonable steps were taken to find them.

Ignoring unknown assets does not make them irrelevant. It increases legal, tax, and dispute risk.

What Counts as an “Unknown Asset”

An unknown asset is not limited to valuables hidden in a property. It can include:

• Items not immediately visible in the main residence
• Assets stored off-site or with third parties
• Items referenced in paperwork but not physically present
• Collections or groupings whose value is not obvious
• Assets beneficiaries believe exist but cannot locate

The defining feature is uncertainty—not value.

Secure the Estate Before Investigating

Before attempting to identify unknown assets, the estate must be secured. Unrestricted access, early removal, or tidying often turns “unknown” into permanently lost.

Executors should:

• Restrict access to executors only
• Control keys and entry
• Prevent removal “for safekeeping”
• Avoid sorting or clearance

A secured estate preserves evidence while investigation takes place.

Use Documentation to Identify Gaps

Unknown assets are often revealed by what documentation shows is missing. Executors should review:

• Room-by-room inventories
• Photographs taken before disturbance
• Insurance schedules
• Old valuation or appraisal reports
• Correspondence and notes

Gaps—such as references to jewellery with none present, or keys without obvious locks—are prompts for further investigation.

Investigate Methodically, Not Casually

Searching for unknown assets requires structure. Executors should:

• Work room by room
• Inspect storage areas, containers, and locked units
• Consider safes and lockboxes
• Examine outbuildings and secondary spaces

Casual searching or reliance on memory will not meet the standard of reasonable care.

Consider Off-Site and Third-Party Storage

Many unknown assets are not in the main property at all. Executors should actively investigate:

• Garages, lock-ups, and sheds
• Storage units
• Bank safe deposit boxes
• Business premises
• Items held by relatives or professionals

Location does not remove an asset from the estate. Off-site assets must still be identified and valued.

Review Paper Trails and Digital Records

Unknown assets are frequently uncovered through paperwork rather than physical inspection. Executors should review:

• Insurance policies listing valuables
• Financial statements or sale records
• Emails or digital accounts
• Diaries or notebooks

These records often point directly to assets that are not immediately visible.

Do Not Assume “Gifted” Without Evidence

A common and risky assumption is that an unknown asset must have been gifted. Executors must establish:

• Whether a gift occurred
• When it occurred
• Who received it
• Whether it falls within the seven-year inheritance tax rules

Assuming a gift without evidence exposes executors to legal and tax risk.

Professional Probate Valuation Identifies Unknown Assets

Independent probate valuers are trained to identify indicators of unknown assets and to investigate them methodically as part of the valuation process.

FEAC Legal works with executors, solicitors, and administrators across England, Scotland, and Wales to identify and account for unknown assets within structured probate valuations. With over 12 years of experience and no probate valuation ever rejected by HMRC, this process is handled to evidential standards that protect executors.

Asset Recovery Is Often Essential

Unknown assets are frequently discovered during structured asset recovery rather than informal searching. Cash, jewellery, documents, medals, and collectables are commonly concealed within everyday contents or paperwork.

FEAC Legal includes a FREE asset recovery service when instructed for probate valuation or clearance. This service is specifically designed to trace unknown or overlooked assets and ensure they are properly included in the estate. Further details are available via our asset recovery service.

Clearance Must Follow Investigation

Clearing an estate before unknown assets are investigated is one of the most serious executor errors. Clearance removes context and often converts uncertainty into permanent loss.

Where clearance is required, it must follow valuation and investigation. FEAC Legal’s specialist house clearance service operates alongside probate valuation to ensure unknown assets are identified before removal.

Document Every Step Taken

If an asset remains unknown, documentation becomes the executor’s protection. Executors should retain:

• Records of searches conducted
• Notes on areas inspected
• Copies of documents reviewed
• Professional reports and instructions

Reasonable care is judged on what can be evidenced, not on whether every asset was found.

Unknown Does Not Mean Ignored

Unknown assets create risk only when they are ignored. When executors investigate methodically, document thoroughly, and involve professionals where appropriate, uncertainty is converted into defensible process.

For further guidance on executor responsibilities and probate risk management, our FAQs provide additional clarity.

Proper Handling Reduces Risk

Handling unknown assets correctly:

• Protects estate value
• Reduces beneficiary disputes
• Supports HMRC compliance
• Protects executors from personal liability

In probate, uncertainty is unavoidable. Risk is not—when it is managed properly.

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Contact FEAC Legal

Email: admin@feaclegal.co.uk
Phone: 07448259106
To make an enquiry or request a valuation, please contact us.