Executor Expenses Record and Reimbursement Log

What this is for

Dealing with an estate costs money, and in the early weeks that money often comes from whoever is nearest: a son paying for death certificates, a sister covering petrol to the house, an executor paying the probate fee on their own card because the bank accounts are frozen. Months later, when the estate accounts are drawn up, those small payments are hard to remember and harder to prove. This log captures each one promptly, including mileage, parking and phone top-ups, together with who paid, whether there is a receipt, and whether it has been repaid.

The workbook has one Expenses tab. Each row is a single payment, with columns for Date, Paid to, What for, Category, Amount, Paid from, Paid by (name), Receipt kept, Reimbursed on and Owed back. Category is a dropdown with the usual headings for a UK estate: Funeral, Probate fee, Legal and professional fees, Death certificates, Property upkeep, Utilities and insurance, Travel, Postage and copies, Gazette notice and Other. Paid from offers Estate account, My own money or Someone else. Two totals sit at the top: Total spent, and Owed back to people.

Part of the executor’s role is to pay debts and taxes and then share out the estate as the will or the law sets out, and the beneficiaries are entitled to see how the money was used. A clear record of costs makes the final accounts straightforward. What counts as a proper estate expense can depend on the will and on the circumstances; this log is a record, not legal advice, and a solicitor can tell you if something is unclear.

How to fill it in

1. Open the workbook, read the instructions tab once, and delete the EXAMPLE row on the Expenses tab. It shows a set of death certificate copies bought from the register office by a relative.
2. Add a row every time money is spent on the estate, on the day if you can. Enter the Date, who you paid in Paid to, and a short description in What for, such as "probate application fee" or "locksmith, new back door lock".
3. Pick a Category from the dropdown. Use Gazette notice for the cost of the deceased estates notice, and Probate fee for the application fee. Consistent categories make the totals easy to read and easy to copy into the estate accounts.
4. Type the Amount in pounds, then choose Paid from. If it came out of the estate or executor account, choose Estate account. If you paid it yourself, choose My own money. If a relative paid, choose Someone else and write their name in Paid by (name).
5. Set Receipt kept to Y or N. Any row marked N turns amber, as a reminder to find the receipt, ask for a copy, or at least write down the card statement line. Keep paper receipts in one envelope or folder, and photograph them as a backup. Emailed invoices can be saved in a dedicated inbox label or a shared cloud folder, named by date.
6. Watch the Owed back column. It fills itself in for anything paid from someone’s own money that has not yet been repaid, and the amount turns amber. When the estate pays that person back, type the date in Reimbursed on and the Owed back figure drops to zero.
7. Check the two totals at the top from time to time. Owed back to people shows how much the estate must repay before anything is shared out. Total spent is a figure the beneficiaries will ask about.
8. When the estate is ready to be closed, use this tab alongside the assets and debts register to prepare the estate accounts. The task list has a row for this step.

A filled-in example

Common mistakes

• Paying the estate’s debts from your own pocket to get them out of the way. The person’s debts are paid from the estate, not by the executor personally, and paying them yourself can make the accounts muddled. Wait until the estate can pay, and if you do pay, log it.
• Not keeping receipts. A bank statement shows that money left your account but not what it was for. A receipt, even a photographed one, answers questions before they are asked.
• Mixing estate money with your own. Once there is an estate or executor account, pay estate costs from it wherever possible, so the records stay clean.
• Sharing out money before everyone who paid costs has been repaid. The Owed back total should be zero before the final distribution.
• Forgetting small costs such as stamps, photocopies, parking, mileage and household cleaning. Individually small, together they can reach hundreds of pounds across a year, and memory fades quickly.