Value at date of death

A question about : Value at date of death

Hi, after the death of my brother I'm trying to value his estate. How do you go about finding the value of something like an Aviva Investors UK Equity Income Fund Class 1 on a particular date? The statement shows a number of shares but doesn't say what they are.

If I got a solicitor to handle his estate would they sort out things like this or would I still have to find out myself and then give this information to the solicitor.

Starting to feel a bit overwhelmed!

Thanks,
Chris

Best answers:

• Hi,
  Sorry for your loss.
  Firstly everything I say is from what I have had to deal with personally. Is there a reference on the statement you are looking at? I would call Aviva with the reference and ask for the valuation of the shares on the date of death and hopefully they should be able to provide it. You can then multiply the value of the require share/s by the number of shares he has (if they do not freely give you the total valuation).
  You could hire a solicitor, but from my experience, I have been informed it depends on the value of the estate and how the solicitors charging structure works (i.e. % of estate, flat fee etc).
  Hopefully someone will be along to give you more accurate information.
  Take care
• I think Aviva charge for valuations.
  You can find them through the usual share valuation channels on-line yahoo Hargreaves landsdown etc.
  Once you work out which ones they are!
  I will try and remember to look it up later.
  It is possible to transfer these rather than cash them in if a beneficiary want to keep them
  (I am not at home but they sound very familiar to shares my dad had in an ISA)
• According to Aviva's website, that fund comprises of anything from 40 - 75 different holdings so valuing the individual shares will be a bit of a task. Asking Aviva for a valuation is likely to be the best bet IMO. Alternately, see if there is mention of a financial advisor in any paperwork.
• They are shares in their own right so are quoted(you don't need the individual holdings),
  looking for them now.......
  Edit1: just checked it is ...higher income plus fund class 1 I have....
  Edit2: the reference I think you need is GB0004457197
  (double check this)
  https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/q/hp?s=GB0004457197.L
• Thanks for all the advice. I tried the link and the first time I saw a chart of daily prices - I tried to type in the date range I wanted and now it just says 'Historical quote data is unavailable for the specified date range'. Now when I click on the link I no longer see a chart just that text. I'll try again when I get home tonight.
  Thanks,
  Chris
  P.S. it's the price on 10 December 2014 if anyone can find it.
• Seems to be broken for me too now.
  I used at least two sources to check prices.
  I get 83.7 for 10 Dec 2014 at this one.
  https://markets.investorschronicle.co...ymbol=28292571
• Fantastic! Thanks very much. I had just found a price of 84 - but your more accurate 83.7 will save me a few more quid. Now how do I find out if a dividend is paid for this fund?
  Cheers,
  Chris
• FT looks familiar
  https://markets.ft.com/research//Tear...0004457197:GBX
• I valued all my Dad's investments through netsharevalue.co.uk - and they should be able to cater for OEICs as well, as they're effectively quoted companies, albeit essentially just vehicles for spread investment. But, actually, the OEICS he had, the management company provided a DoD valuation without needing to be asked. If yours held them directly, the situation might be a little different - but it's pretty scuzzy to charge any significant sum for a value that they can obtain at the touch of a button. (netsharevalue charged Ј3 odd a holding, which is pretty trivial compared to what some registrars quoted for share valuation [Yes, Equiniti, I'm looking at you and your lack of shame...]). If the estate is nowhere near the IHT limit, then rough values will suffice - but, if it's over, much better to have a approved third-party piece of paper, unless you're really sure of the basis on which you need to do the calculations. The rules around the basis are not hugely complex - but none of the prices you will find quoted for a given date are the correct ones for a probate value...
• Although not top of the list for most people if you get the chance when someone dies go buy the following days financial times.
  There is always a local library if yours still carries papers.