Fraser and Fraser

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Who We Are
- Our Firm At A Glance
  Fraser and Fraser has over 90 years of experience in probate research.
- What We Do
  Discover the world of genealogy and probate research with Fraser and Fraser.
- Genealogy News
  Read up on the latest probate research news and delve into our genealogy blog.
- Meet The Team
  Our team have over 400 years of combined experience in probate and genealogy services.
- Testimonials
  Hear from some of our many happy clients on the services we offer.
- Making History
  The Making History schools project.
- Job Vacancies
  Check here to see our latest vacancies.
- Give Us Your Feedback
  We love hearing from our clients and aim to continually improve thanks to your feedback.
Legal Services
- Find Missing Beneficiaries
  Locating missing heirs and beneficiaries is at the heart of our business. As international probate researchers, we’ll tailor our service so it’s unique for you.
- Missing Beneficiary Insurance
  We can obtain Missing Beneficiary Insurance on your behalf.
- Medallion Signature Guarantee
  Authorise the transfer or sale of North American assets by using a certified STAMP guarantor.
- Certificate Ordering Service
  Obtain a birth, death or marriage certificate with our quick and easy service.
- Will Search Service
  Discover whether a valid Will exists before the estate is distributed.
- Missing Will Insurance
  We can obtain Missing Will Insurance on your behalf.
- International Bankruptcy Search
  We can undertake international bankruptcy searches on your behalf.
- Research Assessment
  The quick and efficient way to receive an expert opinion on your family tree research.
- Find Unclaimed Assets
  Let our experts help you locate lost or unknown assets to an estate.
- Managing Assets
  Valuation, transfer and sale of shares and resealing grants.
- Probate Property Services
  Assistance with valuation, insurance, clearance and sale of probate property.
- Nil Rate Band Check
  Obtain proof of transfer ability.
- What Are The Costs?
  Download a comprehensive list of all our services and their costs.
- Refer A Case
  If you would like to use one of our services, please get in touch.
Public Sector
- Why Work With Us
  It’s quick, it’s free and it cuts out the middle man. Contact us to learn more.
- Searching For Next-Of-Kin?
  We can help you search for missing beneficiaries, and it won’t cost you a penny.
- Dealing with an Empty Property
  We offer a broad range of probate property services suitable to Local Authorities.
- Asset Search
  We can help local authorities uncover any assets left behind.
- Locating a Will
  Discover whether or not there is a valid Will.
- Additional research services
  We may be able to assist you with other case work as well.
- Public Sector FAQ
  Got a question? Our probate research experts are on hand to help.
- Refer A Case
  If you would like to use one of our services, please get in touch.
Beneficiaries
- Why Have We Contacted You?
  Received a letter, email or voice mail from us and want to know more? Let us explain.
- How Long Does Probate Take?
  We explain our processes and the work involved with tracing missing beneficiaries.
- Frequently Asked Questions
  Got a question? Our probate research experts are on hand to help.
- Terminology
  With probate research comes a lot of jargon - but fear not, we've got it covered.
- Been Contacted By An Heir Hunter?
  Have you been contacted by a firm of probate researchers, but you're not sure if it's a legitimate claim? We're here to help.
- Refer A Case
  If you would like to use one of our services, please get in touch.
- Client Zone
  Login here to receive updates on your case
- Online Client Agreement
  This area is just for our clients who have already been contacted. Please log in here.
- Protected: Recommended firms for estate administration
  This is a protected page only for those beneficiaries who are also administrators of the estate.
Heir Hunters
- Heir Hunters
- Heir Hunters Appeals
  A list of cases from series 1 - 12 that have appeared on the program in the unclaimed appeals section. Fraser and Fraser have added the values.
- Job Vacancies
  Information on current vacancies an applying for a Job at Fraser and Fraser.
- Refer A Case
- Been Contacted By An Heir Hunter?
  What to look out for if you have been contacted by an Heir Hunter
- Unclaimed Estates
  An additional list of case that are unclaimed with Values.
  Why not have a go at helping us solving some of these cases where we have reached a dead end?
Contact Us
- Opt in to stay informed

Statement on COVID-19

Whilst we are striving to run our operations largely as normal, the safety of our staff and clients is our top priority and at the heart of every decision we make. We have all but a few of our staff working from home, with direct connections to our specialist computer systems. Whilst it’s taking a lot to get used to these new systems and the impact of the Government’s daily announcements, we believe it’s critical to do our part to help reduce the transmission of COVID-19.

Over the past 50 years, the business has faced many challenges and we have constantly evolved our working patterns, but nothing on such a scale as this. The business has grown by mixing the specialist skills from our various departments to allow us to efficiently manage the whole process of claiming unclaimed estates and assets.

With immediate effect (17/03/2020), we have suspended the face to face interaction that our firm will sometimes have with our current clients and potential beneficiaries, due to the risk of onward transmission. As there is a possibility of asymptomatic people passing on the virus, we feel it is unnecessary to put anyone at an increased risk of infection.

The business remains fully operational for new instructions and we will continue to contact new and existing clients via phone and letter or email during this period. At the current time, our post is being delivered and scanned to the relevant case manager. Our outgoing post is being printed remotely before being sent, so we apologise in advance if there is a delay in you receiving our communication or the quality of some of the printing. Please do bear with us as the phones do take some time to connect, and are dependent on the internet speed of the end-user, if you can’t get through, please just drop us an email and someone will respond.

We continue to support and assist the solicitors we work with in distributing the funds our clients are entitled to. In February 2020 we distributed over £2 million of recovered funds and we expect this to continue each month as solicitors focus on the pipeline of pending work. If you do receive a cheque from us and have difficulties in accessing a bank then please get in touch and we can place a stop on any cheque and make an interbank payment.

As a traditional partnership, the business and welfare of our staff is secure and we will meet these challenging times with the same gusto that our founder Gertrude Christensen, a lady in a man’s world did over 90 years ago.

WHO WE ARE

We’re Fraser and Fraser, a professional team of genealogists and international probate researchers, dedicated to tracing missing beneficiaries to unclaimed estates.

With over 90 years of experience, we assist the legal profession with every element of estate administration.

MORE THAN
20,000
CASES SOLVED

OVER
100,000
BENEFICIARIES TRACED

TOTAL CASE VALUE
£200,000,000+

HAVE WE CONTACTED YOU?

We think you may be legally entitled to a share of an estate

You may know the person we are trying to contact

We would like to confirm you are the person we think you are

Solicitors

We assist the legal profession in all aspects of estate administration, using our expert knowledge to track down missing heirs to unclaimed estates.

Public Sector

Searching for next-of-kin is what we do best, and so offer our support free of charge to the public sector looking to trace relatives.

Beneficiaries

Heirs and beneficiaries are at the core of our business, as we work on your behalf to bring you an unexpected windfall.

Heir Hunters

You may have seen us on BBC One’s Heir Hunters (since day one!), keeping you involved in the world of probate research, as we trace down heirs to unclaimed estates ahead of the competition.

Quick Links

Have you been contacted by another Heir Hunter?

If you have been contacted by another company of “Heir Hunters” or Probate Genealogists / Researchers then follow this link to read some of the signs to help you identify the difference between a legitimate company and a fraudster.

Fraser and Fraser offer a free verification service to potential heirs.

Online Client Agreement

Use this link if you have already been contacted by us and wish to fill in the Questionnaire or Agreement online.

Regulation

We believe in regulation. In 2016 Fraser and Fraser were one of the founding firms of the Association of Probate Researchers, a member body of The Professional Paralegal Register (PPR) and the first regulatory body in the Probate Research industry.

Find out more about the Association of Probate Researchers and how our Case Managers became among the first to be regulated by the PPR.

Contact us

We pride ourselves on being approachable and responsive. If you have an enquiry, would like to refer an estate to us or have a question regarding your case, please get in touch – we’d love to hear from you.

What they say

“My siblings and I wish to take this opportunity to thank you for addressing this matter, and for your patience and dedication to pursuing it.”
Icilda Brown – International Beneficiary

“I am just writing to say thank you for your involvement in sorting out our family tree. Thank you for all your hard work on this case, and thanks to your team. I’ve enjoyed watching the television episodes of Fraser and Fraser very much and so I’ve been absolutely delighted to find myself on the receiving end.”
Suzannah White – Beneficiary

“Very quick response to our query and then dealing very efficiently with the USA Bankruptcy search we requested at a very reasonable price.”
Solicitor

"I heard of your firm from the television programme 'Heir Hunters'. My contact with the staff was very good, they were polite and helpful."
Irene Simmons – Beneficiary

"I have been extremely satisfied every step of the way with the very professional service provided by Brian Shew. As already noted, this was a fairly complex case where all the different hurdles were dealt with in a very satisfied manner."
Beneficiary

"Thank you for all your hard work - very pleased and a nice surprise to receive a cheques despite the long wait."
Susan Summer – Beneficiary

"Thank you very much for the cheque I received. It was a pleasant surprise when you first contacted me and I have found the process very stress free. It seems that there are indeed good people out there in this new world of technology. Not all firms are what I call "ambulance chasers". I found this a good, easy and professional experience."

Sue Hartley – Beneficiary

“Very efficient and prompt in communication. Helped us achieve what we needed to do.”
Sinem Goodger – Thomas Boyd Whyte Solicitors

Please pass on to the Case Manager, my personal thanks for keeping me well informed during the fairly lengthy administration period that Estates of this type necessarily generate.”
Sandra Dixon – Beneficiary

“Thank you very much for your report, and I am pleased to see this has been a successful search. Thank you again for a good service and I am sure I will use you again if required.”
Lindsey Johnson – Partner, Williscroft & Co

I would like to thank everyone concerned for all of the hard work by them and for the information given to me. I have since then been able to meet with various relatives who I have not seen for many years. Wonderful!
Audrey Hockney – Beneficiary