The 19 unclaimed estates in Peterborough you could inherit - if you have one of these surnames

Residents in Peterborough could be entitled to one of 19 unclaimed estates, with a new list from the Treasury revealing more than a dozen estates across the city without a known heir.

An unclaimed estate happens when a person dies without a valid will in place and no heirs come forward to claim their inheritance.

When this occurs, the deceased’s property becomes an ‘ownerless property,’ and the Crown takes ownership of it.

However, family members can come forward during a 12-year period after the Crown takes possession of the estate if they believe they are entitled to a share of the deceased’s property.

If the claim is filed after the 12-year term has expired, the Treasury will allow claims up to 30 years from the date of the person’s death, subject to no interest being paid on the money kept.

As of July 2026, there are more than 5,000 unclaimed estates across the UK.

If someone dies without leaving a valid or effective will, the following are entitled to the estate as shown in the strict order of priorities below:

• the deceased’s husband, wife or civil partner
• the deceased’s children or their descendants
• the deceased’s mother or father
• the deceased’s brothers or sisters or their descendants (nieces and nephews)
• the deceased’s half* brothers or sisters or their descendants (nieces and nephews of the half-blood)
• the deceased’s grandparents
• uncles and aunts or their descendants (first cousins)
• the deceased’s half uncles and aunts or their descendants (first cousins of the half-blood)
• Half means they share only one parent or grandparent (for example, the same mother but a different father)

Below are the unclaimed estates belonging to people who died in Peterborough.

Some of the estates have laid unclaimed since the late 1990s, while others date back just a few months.

The list is correct as of July 7, 2026.

Neil Bell. Died 21/8/24.

John Melvyn Blyth. Died 10/1/25.

Peter Borman. Died 8/7/17.

Pauline Crockford. Died 6/6/97.

Ian James Forbes. Died 17/4/20.

Joseph Gallagher. Died 5/4/99.

Paul Hagan-Chambers. Died 9/12/22.

Robert McDonald. Died 5/4/99.

William James McNabb. Died 13/6/11.

Olga Meinik. Died 30/9/21.

James Mullins. Died 31/5/08.

Michael Nolan. 6/8/11.

Lakhnir Singh Perhar. Died 26/6/01.

Violet Robinson. Died 12/9/97.

Anthony Harry Secker. Died 21/10/12.

Maria Theresa Smith. Died 2/1/15.

Martha Upchurch. Died 17/9/06.

Rosa Walichnowski. Died 8/7/13.

Eileen Wilson. Died 15/8/99.

If you are in any doubt about your entitlement to claim an estate, you should first seek your own legal advice or email a family tree, showing how you are related to the deceased, including the full names, dates of birth and death of the family members on it, to [email protected].