Missing Heirs and Beneficiaries

Finding missing beneficiaries is our core expertise, and we stake our reputation on locating people wherever they are in the world.

With many decades of experience and a global network of researchers, we can locate individuals across the world, whether a missing heir in an intestacy case or a beneficiary (or executor) named in a will.

Our award-winning research team can call upon over 290 years of combined probate genealogy and people-tracing experience. We dig deeper, search harder, and get results.

Every search is different, and locating missing beneficiaries isn’t always straightforward. Tracing beneficiaries can present complex challenges, particularly where little information is available or families are scattered worldwide.

Whether it involves tracing one individual or piecing together the extended family tree in an intestacy matter, we apply meticulous methods and unrivalled expertise to deliver results.

In addition, our genealogy reports are readily accepted for missing beneficiary indemnity insurance, as underwriters will always need to know what steps have been taken in trying to locate missing beneficiaries.

For a free initial consultation with one of our highly accredited and experienced team, please contact us.

 

Why Choose Us?

We have been helping legal professionals with people-tracing for nearly 50 years and are a safe pair of hands in an uncertain world.

We are instructed by solicitors, estate administrators, executors, and trustees who require assistance in identifying and locating beneficiaries. Our clients rely on us not only for our results but also for the clear, comprehensive reports we provide, ensuring full compliance with legal obligations.

With an enviable track record built over decades of dedicated work, we have earned a reputation as trusted experts in the field of probate research.

When instructing us for your search, you benefit from:

  • Proven Expertise: Our researchers are among the most skilled and experienced in the industry and have been recognised at recent national, independent industry awards
  • Outstanding Success Rate: We have successfully traced thousands of missing beneficiaries, from straightforward cases to the most complex and sensitive matters.
  • Global Reach: While based in the UK, our network of agents and researchers spans the globe, enabling us to locate individuals almost anywhere.
  • Efficient and Thorough: Our proven methodologies allow us to deliver results quickly without compromising on accuracy or attention to detail.

 

A Proven Approach Trusted by Legal Professionals

No two cases are alike. We tailor our research strategy to each assignment, combining traditional genealogical methods with the latest digital methods.  We will always provide a bespoke, no-obligation quote before proceeding with any work.

We understand the need for certainty and due diligence in the estate administration process. Our genealogy reports are prepared to the highest evidential standards, ready to support quotes for missing beneficiary indemnity insurance and withstand scrutiny from underwriters and even the courts.

We also offer an Address Search service, which can be a cost-effective option if there is just a requirement to verify an address already held on file. Contact the team to find out more.

 

An End-to-End Service with Transparent Fees

From initial consultation to final report, our service is personal, responsive, and accurate. We work closely with solicitors, probate practitioners, and personal representatives to ensure that:

  • Entitled beneficiaries are identified and located.
  • Documentary evidence is supplied to support distribution.
  • Missing Beneficiary Insurance cover is obtained where appropriate.

 

Flexible Fees

We recognise that no one case is the same. Therefore, our charging options reflect that and are also entirely transparent. Ultimately, the choice is yours and we are flexible enough to work around your requirements – there is no mandating from us on which option you must choose.

We offer a choice of fee structures to suit your needs:

  • Contingency agreements (Finder’s fee), where we underwrite the cost of research ourselves.
  • Hourly rate: Time-charged work for defined research tasks
  • Fixed-fee research assignments.

Before commencing any search, we provide a clear proposal, outlining the scope of work and terms of engagement, ensuring that there are no hidden surprises.

More information on our fee structure can be found here.

 

Speak To The Experts

We are so much more than just tracing agents – we are specialists in the field of missing beneficiary research and probate genealogy generally.

With a proven track record of delivering results in even the most difficult circumstances, we are ready to assist with your case.

Whether you need to find the unknown heirs to an intestacy or track down a missing beneficiary named in a will, we offer a fast, friendly, and affordable service.

For a free, no-obligation consultation with one of our accredited and highly experienced case managers, please contact us today.

Case Studies

The following examples demonstrate how our expertise, persistence, and in-depth knowledge of genealogical research delivers results – even in cases that initially appear insurmountable.

Private Client Manager Carolyn Felgate describes how she solved a particularly difficult case using persistence and ingenuity.

We were instructed by a law firm to find a Jewish gentleman with the popular, but not overtly Jewish, surname Marks. We had exhausted the usual channels and drawn a blank.

It was then that I undertook a trawl of the London Gazette naturalisation notices using a vast variety of search strings, finally using just part of his home address.

Eureka! It appeared that the gentleman had actually dropped his original unusual surname in favour of using his middle name Marks, but the naturalisation record clearly showed the ‘known as’ alternative and all the other facts fitted.

From this, I was able to swiftly locate a probate entry for his father’s will and further civil records that confirmed his identity.

(For reasons of confidentiality, names and other identifying features have been altered.)

Case manager Christopher Ferry discusses a case involving five different countries and over 100 lost heirs.

One notable case involved twin sisters who died within two months of each other. Both were intestate and both had assets of significant value. The solicitors had been instructed by one stem of the family but not much was known about the wider tree.

Ultimately, we located over 100 beneficiaries with shares ranging from 1/6th of the estate to a 1/3204th. The family were spaced out across France, Canada, USA, South Africa and Australia.

This research was conducted on a contingency basis with Anglia Research underwriting the cost of the work. It took more than two years to tie up the case, which was very complex in places and involved a lot of dogged persistence chasing relatives for signatures.

However large the family, and however widely scattered, the law insists that every legitimate beneficiary receives their rightful share – so we worked the case to completion, as we always do. The detailed genealogical reports that we produced meant that we could obtain missing beneficiary indemnity insurance to protect the personal representative.

(For reasons of confidentiality, names and other identifying features have been altered.)

Meet our case managers Contact us

2025 Anglia Research Services All Rights Reserved.
Anglia Research and Anglia Research Services are trading names of Anglia Research Services Limited, a company registered in England and Wales: no. 05405509

Marketing by Unity Online