We have made wills leaving everything to our married son. But we wondered whether, if anything should happen to us both at the same time, he would be able to get money from our account immediately to pay our funeral expenses for example. Would everything have to go through probate first?
Banks and building societies will often pay funeral accounts without requiring to see a grant of probate. Beyond this they will generally require a grant of probate if the account contains more than £5,000 or £10,000. It’s often the case however that the bank account balance will fall below this after the funeral bill is paid, in which case the bank will release the funds on receipt of a certified copy of the death certificate and will.