29 April 2026 · 5 min read
Heir hunters charge 15–40% commission to find relatives of people who died intestate. But the list they use is public — and free to search yourself. Here is what you need to know.
If you have ever discovered a potential unclaimed estate, you may have been approached by — or considered hiring — a firm of heir hunters. This article explains what heir hunters do, how they charge, whether they are regulated, and whether you actually need one.
Heir hunting is the commercial practice of researching unclaimed estates to identify living relatives who may be entitled to claim. Heir hunter firms monitor the Bona Vacantia list — the public register of estates that have passed to the Crown — and then research the family tree of the deceased to find potential beneficiaries who were unaware of their entitlement.
When a firm believes it has found a valid claimant, it contacts them with a contract. In exchange for being identified as a potential heir and guided through the claims process, the claimant agrees to pay the firm a percentage of whatever they ultimately receive from the estate.
The research itself is genealogical work: tracing family trees using birth, marriage, and death records from the GRO, census records, electoral rolls, and other historical sources. The firm then compiles the documentary evidence needed to support a claim to the Government Legal Department.
Heir hunters work almost exclusively on a contingency basis — they take a percentage of the estate if the claim succeeds, and nothing if it fails. Commission rates vary between firms, but the range is typically:
On an estate worth £50,000, a 25% commission means the firm takes £12,500. On an estate worth £200,000, that same rate costs £50,000. These are not regulated figures — firms set their own rates, and claimants who sign contracts without shopping around may pay significantly more than necessary.
It is legal to negotiate commission rates, and it is worth doing so. Some firms will reduce their rate if you can demonstrate that you had already identified the estate yourself before being contacted.
Heir hunting firms in the UK are largely unregulated. They are not licensed in the way that solicitors, financial advisers, or estate agents are. The Association of Professional Genealogists (APG) and the Society of Genealogists have professional codes of conduct, but membership is voluntary and enforcement is limited.
This means there is significant variation in quality between firms. Some operate with high standards and transparent contracts; others have been criticised for opaque fee structures, aggressive contact tactics, or claiming credit for research the claimant had already begun independently.
Before signing any contract with a heir hunting firm, consider:
Yes — the Bona Vacantia list is a public document. The Government Legal Department publishes it and makes it freely available. You do not need to pay anyone to access it, and finding your name (or a relative's name) on the list does not obligate you to use a commercial heir hunting firm.
You can search the list directly on the Government Legal Department's website, or use FindMyLegacy for phonetically-matched search across the full list. Phonetic matching matters because surnames are often spelled differently across generations — a search for “Mackenzie” might miss “McKenzie” or “MacKenzie” without it.
Once you have identified a potential match and believe you are related to the deceased, you can contact the Government Legal Department directly to enquire about the estate and the claims process. There is no requirement to go through a commercial intermediary. For a full guide to finding and claiming missing inheritance yourself, including the intestacy order of entitlement and how to submit a claim, see our dedicated guide.
This point is worth being explicit about: the starting point for every heir hunting firm is the same public list that is freely available to anyone. When a firm contacts you saying they have “discovered” that you may be entitled to an estate, they have found a name on the Bona Vacantia list and researched the family tree from there. The research may be valuable, but the source document is public.
The Bona Vacantia list is updated regularly as new estates are referred to the Crown. FindMyLegacy monitors the list and will send you an email alert when a new estate matching your saved surnames appears — so you can be the first to know, rather than waiting to be contacted by a commercial firm. For a full breakdown of what the list contains, how long estates stay claimable, and exactly how to search it, see our dedicated guide to the heir hunters list of unclaimed estates.
For all the above, there are situations where professional help is genuinely valuable — or even necessary:
The key distinction is between heir hunters (commercial, contingency-based, largely unregulated) and solicitors (regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, who charge transparently). For complex matters, a solicitor specialising in probate is usually the better option.
No. The Bona Vacantia list is a public document and the Government Legal Department accepts claims directly from individuals. You do not need to go through a commercial intermediary. If the genealogical research is straightforward, you can compile the evidence yourself — birth, marriage, and death certificates tracing your relationship to the deceased.
Commission rates range from around 10–15% for independent genealogists to 30–40% for larger commercial operations. On a £100,000 estate, a 25% fee costs £25,000. Rates are negotiable — particularly if you had already identified the estate before being contacted.
Not in any formal statutory sense. Heir hunters are not licensed by the FCA, the SRA, or any other regulatory body. Professional membership of genealogical societies is voluntary. This means standards vary considerably between firms — always have a contract reviewed by a solicitor before signing.
Heir hunters are genealogical researchers who work on contingency and are not regulated. Probate solicitors are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, charge transparent fees, and carry professional indemnity insurance. For complex or contested claims, a probate solicitor is usually the more appropriate choice.
Yes — it is freely available. FindMyLegacy gives you phonetically-matched search across the full list, surname watchlists, and email alerts when new estates appear. You can identify potential matches without paying anyone, then decide how to proceed from there.
Search the same list heir hunters use — for free
FindMyLegacy gives you free access to the full Bona Vacantia list with phonetic search, surname watchlists, and email alerts for new matching estates. No commission, no contract, no intermediary.
Data in this article is drawn from the FindMyLegacy database, sourced from the UK Government Legal Department Bona Vacantia Division. Figures reflect the current state of the list and are updated as new estates are added. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.