Find out if a tenancy has been ended after a tenant's death

Check if a tenancy has been ended after a tenant’s death to make sure you can legally rent the property again or sell it.

You may be breaking the law if you try to repossess the property without giving statutory notice to quit, even if the tenant’s died.

Check if a tenancy has been ended by asking the Public Trustee to do a search of the Law of Property database.

  1. Order a search form (NL2) and fill it in.

  2. Email the completed form to the Public Trustee.

  3. Pay for the search by Bacs.

If the death happened before 1 July 1995, contact the Government Legal Department to find out if the tenancy was ended.

Order a NL2 form

Order and pay for a NL2 application form to search the register online. You can either:

The form costs no more than £8.26. You’ll get it by post.

You must buy a new form for each application – you cannot use a photocopy. You can make your own version of the form, as long as it’s laid out in the same way and includes all the relevant information.

Fill in a new search form for each spelling of the name if you aren’t sure of the spelling.

Email the form to the Public Trustee

Email a scan of your completed NL2 form to the Public Trustee at osptcontrolunit@ospt.gov.uk.

It costs £20 for each search. You can only pay by Bacs.

Transfer the fee to the following account within 5 working days of emailing your form:

  • sort code - 80 26 50
  • account number - 10014069
  • account name - The Public Trustee

Include the name of the person who died in the payment reference.

Get search results

You’ll get an email telling you what the Public Trustee has found within 15 working days of sending your form and payment.

A copy of the search will be included if the Public Trustee finds any information.

Contact the Public Trustee

Contact the Public Trustee if you need help.

The Public Trustee
enquiries@ospt.gov.uk
Telephone: 020 3681 2759
Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm
Find out about call charges