IHTM06047 - Monitoring the excepted estate rules: contacting personal representatives outside the prescribed period

Once the 60 (or, where applicable as described at IHTM06042, 35) day period has passed, the personal representatives and any other liable people are discharged from liability (IHTM06043). So, if we have not contacted the personal representatives within that period, they are entitled to rely on the statutory discharge and there is no point in conducting any correspondence with them.

However, the statutory discharge does not apply in cases where we have been given false information or have not been given all the material facts. Where either of these situations applies, you may still contact the liable people. If they refuse to co-operate with your enquiries, you can consider serving a taxpayer notice under FA08/Sch36/Para1.