Intestacy in the UK: How Many People Die Without a Will

No official body records exactly how many people die without a will each year. The Office for National Statistics has confirmed it holds no such data, because death registration does not capture how an estate is administered (ONS, as at July 2026, subject to change).

The closest official measure is the number of letters of administration issued by the courts, the grant applied for when someone dies without a valid will. In 2024 that came to 51,258 for England and Wales, around 40% higher than in 2020 and the highest total since 2008 (Ministry of Justice, as reported by Which?, 2024, subject to change). This is a data piece. It draws only on named official statistics, each cited at the point of use, and sits alongside our estate planning guide and our explainer on dying without a will. Figures are current as at July 2026 and are subject to change.

How many people die without a will in the UK?

There is no direct count, so the courts data is used as a proxy. The Ministry of Justice records 51,258 letters of administration issued in 2024, the grant used where there is no valid will, up around 40% on 2020 and the highest since 2008 (Ministry of Justice, via Which?, as at July 2026, subject to change).

That total sits within 328,460 grants of representation of all kinds issued in 2024, of which 265,566, or 81%, were probate grants applied for where a valid will exists (Ministry of Justice, as at July 2026, subject to change). It is worth noting that many intestate estates never need a grant at all, so the grant figures capture only part of the picture, a point the analysis below returns to.

Key figures at a glance

The numbers below move from all registered deaths, to the grants the courts issue, to the split between estates with a will and without one, and finally to how intestacy divides an estate. Each row is a published figure from a named source, with its reference period and a link. In 2024 the courts issued 51,258 letters of administration, the highest count since 2008 (Ministry of Justice, via Which?, as at July 2026, subject to change).

Death and grant figures are England and Wales. The statutory legacy is England and Wales and applies to deaths on or after 26 July 2023 (legislation.gov.uk). Survey estimates vary by provider. All as at July 2026 and subject to change.

Who inherits when there is no will

When someone dies intestate in England and Wales, the law sets a fixed order of who inherits. A surviving spouse or civil partner comes first, then children, then parents, siblings and more distant relatives, and finally the Crown as bona vacantia if no relatives can be found (gov.uk, as at July 2026, subject to change). Unmarried partners and stepchildren are not entitled under these rules.

The statutory legacy is reviewed periodically. The current £322,000 applies to deaths on or after 26 July 2023 and was set by The Administration of Estates Act 1925 (Fixed Net Sum) Order 2023, replacing the previous £270,000 (legislation.gov.uk, as at July 2026, subject to change). Because these rules can produce an outcome that does not match what a person would have chosen, many people choose to make a will, and it can be worth discussing the options with a qualified professional. Our guide on How to Write a Will sets out the practical steps.

The grant figures understate how many people die without a will, because many intestate estates never reach a grant at all.

Set the 51,258 letters of administration issued in 2024 against 568,613 deaths registered in England and Wales that year, and the grant total is a small fraction of all deaths (Ministry of Justice via Which?; ONS, both as at July 2026, subject to change). A grant is often not needed for small estates or assets held jointly, so many intestacies pass without one and are never counted this way.

Survey evidence points to the wider gap. Research by Lloyds Bank, reported by Which?, found around six in ten people have not made a will, and other surveys put the share at roughly half (Which?, as at July 2026, subject to change). Survey estimates vary by provider and method, so they are best read as a range rather than a precise figure. Taken together, the official grant data and the survey data suggest the number of people who die each year without a valid will is far higher than the 51,258 grants alone imply. These are population-level figures, not a prediction for any one family, and whether an estate needs a grant depends on its size and how assets are held. Many people choose to review their own position with a qualified professional rather than read a national trend as a personal outcome.

Scotland and Northern Ireland

Intestacy is not uniform across the UK. The 51,258 letters of administration (Ministry of Justice, via Which?) and the 568,613 registered deaths (ONS) cited here are for England and Wales, and the £322,000 statutory legacy applies only there (legislation.gov.uk), all as at July 2026 and subject to change. Scotland has its own succession law, with prior rights and legal rights that can give a spouse and children a fixed share, and it uses confirmation rather than a grant of probate or administration. Northern Ireland runs a separate but broadly similar system to England and Wales. Where an estate touches more than one jurisdiction, it can be worth taking advice in each.

Sources and methodology

Every figure on this page comes from a named source and was checked against that source before publication. No number has been estimated, rounded beyond the source, or extrapolated. Where a figure is drawn from a reputable report rather than a primary release, that report is named. The sources used are listed below with their reference periods.

• Letters of administration and the trend: Ministry of Justice, Family Court Statistics Quarterly: January to March 2025, as reported by Which? (51,258 in 2024; up around 40% on 2020; highest since 2008).
• Total grants and probate grants: Ministry of Justice, Family Court Statistics Quarterly: October to December 2024 (328,460 grants of representation, up 18%; 265,566 probate grants, 81%, up 21%; 2024).
• Deaths registered: ONS, Deaths registered in England and Wales, 2024 (568,613 deaths; 581,363 in 2023).
• No official intestacy count: ONS, freedom of information response on intestate deaths (ONS does not hold data on the number who die intestate).
• Statutory legacy and intestacy division: The Administration of Estates Act 1925 (Fixed Net Sum) Order 2023 (£322,000, in force 26 July 2023) and gov.uk, summary of the main rules of intestacy (order of inheritance; bona vacantia; unmarried partners not entitled).
• Adults without a will (secondary survey): Lloyds Bank research, as reported by Which? (around six in ten adults have not made a will; estimates vary by survey).

Frequently asked questions