Lawyers make will plea as millions are left to be hovered up by the state

Aberdein Considine said that among the UK total of unclaimed assets, those of deceased Scots currently sits at £3 million.

The lawyers made the appeal to householders to leave a will after it was revealed that the wealth, property and possessions of 15,176 deceased Britons are poised to pass to the government because the owners made no legal plans or have no obvious next of kin or family.

Many of these people died alone in care homes with no family to survive them, and anyone who dies in Scotland without a will or any traceable relatives has their financial affairs handled by the Office of Queen’s and Lord Treasurer’s Remembrancer (QLTR).

Included among the estates currently in limbo are homes, pensions, dormant bank accounts and premium bonds – some dating as far back as 1978.

In Scotland, five estates worth more than £40,000 are currently lying unclaimed, with the biggest being the £298,000 estate left by Gina Parenti, who lived Glasgow until her death in 2013.

Senior partner at Aberdein Considine, Iain Considine, said: “The Treasury and QLTR handle around 2,500 of these cases annually by advertising the estate and making inquiries to locate beneficiaries.

“If no blood relatives come forward then the estate passes to the Crown.

“However, a simple will would have spared all the red tape and mystery around these estates and made sure t he money went to the people who deserve it.

“It is normally a very simple and quick procedure to have a lawyer prepare a will for you – and it is not expensive.

“We also say to clients that even if they have no close or deserving family, they may wish to consider leaving the funds to charity rather than letting it default to government.”

The deadline for relatives coming forward is generally limited to ten years from the date of death or two years from when the estate is advertised by the QLTR office.

The Treasury banked more than £14million in unclaimed inheritances last year alone.

Mr Considine said getting married, having children or grandchildren and getting divorced were some of the key life events where people should consider where their estate will go.

People can search the unclaimed estates list on the UK Government’s website.