Skip to main content
CLOSE

Charities

Close

Corporate and Commercial

Close

Employment and Immigration

Close

Fraud and Investigations

Close

Individuals

Close

Litigation

Close

Planning, Infrastructure and Regeneration

Close

Public Law

Close

Real Estate

Close

Restructuring and Insolvency

Close

Energy

Close

Entrepreneurs

Close

Private Wealth

Close

Real Estate

Close

Tech and Innovation

Close

Transport and Infrastructure

Close
Home / News and Insights / Insights / Act now! Or your family may lose access to precious digital photos (and more) after your death

Hands up if you store your photos in the cloud, stream music, keep in touch with your family or friends on Facebook or WhatsApp, send emails or express your views on Twitter, Instagram or YouTube. That’s almost everyone then!

All of these things are ‘digital assets’ and more of us are acquiring more of them. But did you know that your family and executors may not have access to your digital accounts after your death? STEP (the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners), in conjunction with Queen Mary University of London, have published a report highlighting the distress and frustration that difficulties accessing digital assets post death cause to family members, the practical and legal problems put in their way by service providers such as Google, Apple and Microsoft and the lack of legal clarity on the ownership of digital assets, whether they can be left by will and rights of access by personal representatives.

And don’t think you can get round the problem by leaving a list of your passwords. This will almost certainly be a breach of contract and may be a criminal offence!

So what can you do? At the very least, you / your clients should draw up an inventory of digital assets – a list of service providers and accounts, including usernames, so you know where to start looking. Some service providers allow personal representatives or family members to control the deletion of the deceased’s account, some allow account users to nominate ‘legacy contacts’ to have access to the accounts after their death. Having drawn up the inventory, consider what rights (if any) the personal representatives have and think about appointing a legacy contact where permitted.

Only legislation will provide a real solution and the Law Commission issued a Call for Evidence in April 2021 which, hopefully, will lead to clearer rules. In the meantime, it’s worth reading those terms and conditions to see what is possible. And back up those photos on a hard drive!

Related Articles

Our Offices

London
One Bartholomew Close
London
EC1A 7BL

Cambridge
50/60 Station Road
Cambridge
CB1 2JH

Reading
The Anchorage, 34 Bridge Street
Reading RG1 2LU

Southampton
Grosvenor House, Grosvenor Square
Southampton SO15 2BE

 

Reading
The Anchorage, 34 Bridge Street
Reading RG1 2LU

Southampton
Grosvenor House, Grosvenor Square
Southampton SO15 2BE

  • Lexcel
  • CYBER ESSENTIALS PLUS

© BDB Pitmans 2024. One Bartholomew Close, London EC1A 7BL - T +44 (0)345 222 9222

Our Services

Charities chevron
Corporate and Commercial chevron
Employment and Immigration chevron
Fraud and Investigations chevron
Individuals chevron
Litigation chevron
Planning, Infrastructure and Regeneration chevron
Public Law chevron
Real Estate chevron
Restructuring and Insolvency chevron

Sectors and Groups

Private Wealth chevron
Real Estate chevron
Transport and Infrastructure chevron