Can Beneficiaries Remove or Change an Executor?

Not just because you would prefer someone else

Beneficiaries cannot change or sack an executor because they would rather someone else did the job, even if every beneficiary agrees. The person named in the will has the right to act.

What you can do depends on two things: whether the executor will step aside voluntarily, and whether they are actually doing something wrong.

Ask them to step down

This is the cheapest route and it often works. Being an executor is hard work, and some people are relieved to be asked.

• If they have not done anything yet, they can give up the role completely by signing a renunciation form (form PA15 on gov.uk). They lose the right to act. They do not lose anything they inherit under the will.
• If there are other executors, they can step back and let the others apply for probate. This is called having "power reserved". They can come back later if needed.
• They can appoint someone to act for them, such as a solicitor, under a power of attorney.

Once an executor has started dealing with the estate, for example by selling things or paying bills from it, they can no longer renounce. Only the court can remove them then.

Before probate is granted

If you think the named executor should not be allowed to act, you can enter a caveat at the Probate Registry. It stops a grant being issued for six months while the problem is dealt with. The court can then be asked to pass over the executor and give the grant to someone else, under section 116 of the Senior Courts Act 1981.

A caveat is for a genuine dispute, such as doubts about the will itself. Using one as a delaying tactic tends to backfire on costs.

After probate is granted

The High Court can remove an executor and appoint a replacement under section 50 of the Administration of Justice Act 1985. The court is not there to punish anyone. It asks whether the estate and the beneficiaries are better off with someone else in charge.

Reasons that can persuade it include:

• doing nothing with the estate for a long time;
• refusing to give beneficiaries information or estate accounts;
• mixing estate money with their own;
• a serious conflict of interest, such as a debt they owe the estate;
• losing mental capacity, or being impossible to contact.

Being slow inside the first year, being unfriendly, or making decisions you disagree with usually is not enough. See how long an executor has to pay beneficiaries for what counts as normal.

Court applications cost thousands of pounds. The court decides who pays, and the losing side can be ordered to cover the other side's costs. At this stage most beneficiaries need a solicitor who handles contested estates.

Try these first

1. Ask in writing for an update, a timetable and the estate accounts.
2. Suggest the executor brings in a professional to do the paperwork alongside them.
3. Try mediation. It costs a fraction of a court case and most estate disputes settle.

Can beneficiaries change the will instead?

Not the will itself, and neither can the executor. What beneficiaries can do is redirect their own inheritance with a deed of variation, within two years of the death, if everyone affected agrees. Our guide on changing a will after death covers this.

Avoiding this in your own will

Choose executors your beneficiaries trust, and name a backup. If two of your children do not get on, appointing just one of them as executor over the others is asking for trouble. An independent co-executor can be better. PureWill lets you name up to three executors. If you expect a fight over your estate, though, a solicitor-drafted will is worth the money.

Related reading: how to choose an executor and what does an executor do?