Where Can I Get Legal and Practical Help After Someone Dies?
After a death, the difficult part is often knowing which kind of help you need.
After a death, the difficult part is often knowing which kind of help you need.
A registrar can explain registration. A bank can explain its bereavement process. A solicitor can advise about an estate. A benefits adviser can check financial support. A counsellor can help with grief.
One person does not need to be the expert in all of it.
For the official step-by-step process
GOV.UK’s “What to do when someone dies” guidance brings together registration, Tell Us Once, funeral information, bereavement benefits, estate valuation, Inheritance Tax, probate and estate administration.
Use official guidance for current procedures and deadlines rather than relying on an old checklist found online.
Scotland and Northern Ireland have different probate and estate processes, so use the guidance for the relevant nation.
For probate and estate administration
You can apply for probate yourself where appropriate.
GOV.UK currently provides online and postal routes and explains that using a probate practitioner can cost more than applying personally.
However, GOV.UK also confirms that professional legal advice can be obtained for any estate.
The key question is whether you can deal with the estate confidently.
When specialist legal advice may be particularly useful
Consider professional advice where:
you cannot understand or locate the will;
family members dispute the will or who should administer the estate;
the estate may not have enough money to pay its debts;
there are trusts, business interests or overseas assets;
property ownership is complicated;
there are significant tax questions;
you are unsure who is entitled to inherit;
or you are being asked to distribute assets before you are comfortable doing so.
These are examples, not a complete list.
Choose somebody appropriately regulated for the work
Probate services can be provided by regulated legal professionals, including solicitors and licensed probate practitioners.
Before instructing somebody, check their regulator, experience and what the quoted fee covers.
Ask whether the fee covers only the grant or full estate administration. These are very different amounts of work.
Questions to ask before instructing a professional
You might ask:
Do you regularly deal with estates like this one?
What parts can I reasonably do myself?
Are you applying for the grant only, or administering the whole estate?
How will you charge?
What additional costs might arise?
Who will handle the work?
What information do you need from me?
What would make the estate more complicated or expensive?
A clear scope at the beginning reduces misunderstandings later.
For benefits, debt and money worries
A surviving partner or relative may need help separate from probate.
Benefits advice can identify bereavement payments and changes to household entitlement. Free money or debt guidance can help where income has fallen or bills are difficult.
Do not assume the estate’s solicitor is automatically the right person to solve the surviving household’s benefits or debt problems.
For grief and mental wellbeing
Practical help does not replace emotional support.
Bereavement can affect sleep, concentration, relationships and everyday functioning.
A GP, bereavement service, counsellor or appropriate mental-health service can support the emotional impact while legal and practical professionals deal with their own areas.
MH360’s role
The MH360 Knowledge Library is designed to help you understand the different parts of the process, prepare questions and work out which type of support may be appropriate.
It does not decide how an estate should be administered, interpret a will for you or recommend a particular legal solution.
Knowing where information ends and individual professional advice begins is part of using the library safely.
Last reviewed
6 September 2026
Important informationThis guide provides general information and is not intended to provide legal, financial, medical or other professional advice. Individual estates and bereavement circumstances can be different. Before disposing of estate assets, distributing property, accepting liability or making important legal or financial decisions, check current official information and consider advice from an appropriately qualified professional.