When people die with no will or relatives their property is handed over to the Crown.

These 'ownerless' goods could be anything from personal possessions to houses or even quantities of cash.

The authorities try to track down anyone related to these people but there are are still hundreds of unclaimed items awaiting a new owner.

The Government updates a list daily with unclaimed estates. This includes five Bolton-born individuals whose property was never picked up.

You can check to see if you have any long-lost family members with unclaimed estates here:

Claims will be accepted within, generally, 12 years from the date the administration of the estate was completed and interest will be paid on the money held.

Who is entitled to claim an estate?

If someone dies without leaving a valid or effective will (intestate) the following are entitled to the estate in the order shown below:

  • Husband, wife or civil partner
  • Children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and so on
  • Mother or father
  • Brothers or sisters who share both the same mother and father, or their children (nieces and nephews)
  • Half brothers or sisters or their children (nieces and nephews of the half blood or their children). ‘Half ’ means they share only one parent with the deceased
  • Grandparents
  • Uncles and aunts or their children (first cousins or their descendants)
  • Half uncles and aunts or their children (first cousins of the half blood or their children). ‘Half’ means they only share one grandparent with the deceased, not both

If you are, for example, a first cousin of the deceased, you would only be entitled to share in the estate if there are no relatives above you in the order of entitlement, for example, a niece or nephew.