Inherited Share Certificates

[Snowbadger]

Hi,
I have a friend who has recently inherited a share portfolio from his mother. It sounds like a sizeable amount with some certificates dating back decades. What advice can any one give in terms of changing the shares into his name, finding if the certificates are still valid and of course selling if that is what he wishes.

As always, thanks for your collective wisdom.

Happy Easter,

SB

[Alaric]

What advice can any one give in terms of changing the shares into his name, finding if the certificates are still valid and of course selling if that is what he wishes.

You would have to contract the Registrars of which a handful cover the whole market. These can be found on dividend notifications or tax certificates which is also a means of establishing whether the share certificates are still valid. Registrars would also offer a selling service. Alternatively if a fresh certificate is issued in the name of the inheritor, that can subsequently be transferred to an online Broker, usually at no additional cost and then sold online.

[MDW1954]

This happened to me. Perfectly straightforward -- as Alaric says, contact the Registrar. The forms look daunting at first, but it's really easy.

I did a couple of forms first, just to make sure that I'd got the process correct, and then when they went through successfully, did all the others.

MDW1954

[scrumpyjack]

On the selling point, most brokers (eg Hargreaves Lansdown) will accept certificated shares without charge and they can then be easily and cheaply sold. Don't sell via the registrar (eg Equiniti) as their charges tend to be much higher.