VERAFI Financial Asset Search

Harrisons is proud to introduce the latest addition to the Harrisons Probate Solutions Group.  Following demand from our professional partners to support them in their continued due diligence in Estate Administration and to account for ALL Assets and Liabilities belonging to the deceased's estate, the VERAFI Financial Asset Search service has been formed.

Why use VERAFI?

-     We contact over 450 financial databases, over 200 of these are subsidiary companies 

-     Our asset search uncovers all accounts and policies that are closed, dormant, paid out in their lifetime or active accounts

-     We offer a personal touch by having a dedicated case manager to each and every Asset Search performed

What will the search cover?

-     Banks & Building Societies                         -  Investments                         

-     Life Assurance                                              -  National Savings & Investments (NS&I)

-     Personal Pension & Pension Plans           - Unclaimed Asset Register (UAR) Search

-     Office of the Public Guardian (OPG)       

-     Unclaimed Shares – There is an estimate of £640 million in unclaimed shares.

Why do a Financial Asset Search?

­ - *UK Financial Institutions have £1.3 Billion approximately held within lost, dormant and active accounts which increases annually, adding to this £3 Billion in NS&I and an estimated £200 billion in unclaimed pension accounts. It’s probable that a high percentage of those belong to people who have passed away. *Data Taken from Commission on Dormant Assets Report dated March 2017.

­  Executors are responsible for a deceased’s estate ‘in perpetuity’ and they have an obligation to locate all the assets in an estate to not disadvantage the beneficiaries.

­  Implications for executors failing to locate and distribute all assets during the process include potential HMRC fines for undeclared IHT and additional costs to the estate.

­  Conducting an Asset Search significantly reduces the time and complications incurred by the executors trying to locate all assets when writing to financial institutions.

­   In the last 12 months 90% of our financial asset searches have produced at least one positive match in regards to the estate whether its closed, dormant or active accounts.

How Does it work and What do I need to provide?

Contact VERAFI via on our online form or via email info@harrisons-assets.com

-     Fill in the known details of the deceased on the form

-     We check the details and perform a search for the deceased’s addresses in the last 5 years

-     Sign the Form of Authority and fill it in with your company details

-     Send us the Death Certificate and Letters of Administration and the National Insurance Number  if you have them.

-     We submit the search, and we email you when there are any matches

-     After 50 days we will send a full report of all responses from the organisations searched