Mr G disappeared in unexplained circumstances, leaving his car abandoned with his keys, phone and diary locked inside.

Extensive searches were made and Mr G’s family appealed in local and national media to locate him, without success. The police were involved in trying to locate Mr G and to establish the cause of his disappearance, however they quickly exhausted all possible lines of enquiry.

Mr G held a number of assets, including a property that was subject to a mortgage. Unfortunately, without a death certificate or any authority to manage Mr G’s assets, no steps could be taken to safeguard and manage his estate.

Mr G’s property stood empty for a number of years with his estate in limbo. Eventually, the property was repossessed by the mortgage lender. This resulted in further distress to Mr G’s family during an already difficult time.

Many years after Mr G’s disappearance, the Presumption of Death Act 2013 was passed and came into force on 1 October 2014. This legislation provides a route for obtaining an order from the

High Court giving a formal declaration of presumed death and allows for the missing persons estate to be administered.

In order for such a declaration to be made, the court need to be satisfied that, on the balance of probabilities, that the missing person is either thought to have died or not been seen alive for a period of 7 years.

As Mr G had not been seen for well over 7 years, we were able to make a successful application for a declaration of presumed death. This involved seeking an initial order for disclosure of any relevant information held by the police and the institutions involved with Mr G’s assets and liabilities, as well as advertisements in the area where he lived. The declaration also included a date and time for the presumed death which is used to formally register the death and is recorded at the General Register Office (GRO).

Once we were in possession of the death certificate, we were able to identify Mr G’s assets and liabilities. As is usual in many of our cases, Mr G’s family knew little of his financial affairs, but we were able to successfully identify a number of unclaimed assets due to his estate. Once we had established the value of Mr G’s estate, we were able to obtain a Grant of Representation to collect in his assets and administer the estate to the beneficiaries.

This case demonstrates that the Presumption of Death Act can assist in cases involving the disappearance of a property owner. If the legislation had come into force some years earlier, it could have prevented the property become empty for a number of years and mortgage lender having to take possession proceedings. It would also have allowed Mr G’s family to arrange their own sale of the property without any significant delays.

Of course, the order of presumed death does nothing to alleviate the anguish Mr G’s family have suffered as a result of his disappearance. However, our work has enabled Mr G’s family to have some closure over the loss of their loved one and has also put his former property back into use.