Selling a Deceased Person's Car: Is a Valuation Needed?
No, the sale itself does not need a valuation. The DVLA's steps for selling a car after a death ask for a letter and the right part of the V5C, and say nothing about a valuation. Most executors still need a value, because the probate paperwork asks for the car's open market value at the date of death, and an estimate of it is needed before probate is applied for.
That is why the question comes up as soon as a buyer appears: the car can be sold without a valuation, but the figure you sell it for is not the figure the estate forms ask for. This guide separates the two, using GOV.UK and HMRC's own wording.
Selling the car and unsure of its value at the date of death? Get a price for a date of death valuation.
Get a price for my date of death valuation
Your price is confirmed in writing before any work begins.
Does the DVLA ask for a valuation when you sell the car?
No. GOV.UK's page on selling a vehicle after someone has died sets out the steps for a seller who has the V5C and one who does not, and none of them mentions a valuation (GOV.UK, selling a vehicle after someone dies). If you still have the V5C, you write to the DVLA Sensitive Casework Team with your relationship to the person who died, the date they died and who should receive any vehicle tax refund. You send the letter with the right part of the V5C:
- Selling to a private individual: fill in section 2 of a newer log book, or section 6 of an older one, give the green "new keeper" slip to the buyer and send the V5C with your letter.
- Selling to a motor trader: ask the trader to complete the yellow section, send the perforated part with your letter and give the trader the rest of the V5C.
If the V5C is missing, the buyer completes form V62 to apply for a new one, which has a £25 fee, and you write to the DVLA with the sale date and the buyer's name and address. GOV.UK also says vehicle tax cannot be transferred to a new owner, so the letter has to say who gets any refund.
Can an executor sell the car before probate?
GOV.UK does not say, and the DVLA page does not say who has the authority to sell. GOV.UK's probate guidance advises against making financial plans or putting property on the market before probate is granted, and says you might need probate before you can deal with the property, money and possessions (GOV.UK, applying for probate). It does not mention cars, so it does not settle the point for a car. Whether you can sell before the grant depends on the estate, so ask the estate's solicitor or the DVLA's bereavement team before you accept an offer. We value cars, and this is a legal question we cannot answer for you.
Why most executors need a value before they sell
Three things on the estate side ask for a figure, whether or not the car has gone:
- The probate application. GOV.UK says you need an estimate of the estate's value if you want to apply for probate, even if no Inheritance Tax is due (GOV.UK, valuing the estate). The car is part of that estimate.
- The value at the date of death. GOV.UK says to value cars at what you would have got if you had sold them on the date the person died, and to look at similar vehicles on online marketplaces.
- Form IHT407, box 2. It covers "cars, including vintage and classic" and asks for the condition at the date of death and the mileage, the open market value at the date of death and, if the car has been sold, the date of sale and the gross sale proceeds (HMRC, form IHT407).
So the sale price and the date of death value sit side by side on the form, and they are two different figures. Our guide to which value goes on the forms when the car is sold after the death covers how they are used, and the IHT407 guide goes through the box line by line.
Need the date of death figure documented before the car goes? We prepare a retrospective valuation with the comparable cars set out, from the details and photos you send.
Get a price for a retrospective valuationYour price is confirmed in writing before any work begins.
Do you need a professional valuation?
Not automatically. HMRC's notes to the IHT400 say you do not have to get a professional valuation for ordinary household and personal goods where public data can estimate the value, and give second hand cars as the example. The same page says that if an item may be worth more than £1,500, or you are not sure, HMRC advises a professional valuation, and that the figure must be the open market value at the date of death, "not an insurance or replacement value" (HMRC, IHT400 notes, page 80). GOV.UK's valuing guide also says you can get a professional valuation for anything worth over £1,500.
| Your situation | What the official guidance points to |
|---|---|
| An ordinary car you think is worth under £1,500 | Public data can be enough: look up similar cars and keep the pages. |
| A car that may be worth more than £1,500, or you are not sure | HMRC advises a professional valuation, and the form asks you to enclose a copy. |
| A classic, modified, imported or rare car | Public data may not describe it, so a valuation is more likely to be needed. |
| The car is not sold yet | The date of death value is still needed for the forms, so the sale does not remove the need. |
Selling to a family member or a beneficiary
HMRC defines the open market value as the realistic selling price, meaning what the item would probably fetch at auction or if it were advertised publicly (IHT400 notes, page 80). A price agreed between an executor and a relative or beneficiary is not an advertised sale, so on its own it does not match that definition. If the car goes to someone who inherits from the estate, write down how the figure was set, and support it with comparable cars from the date of death or with a valuation. That protects the executor if another beneficiary or HMRC asks how the price was reached. Whether a sale to a beneficiary is allowed for your estate is a question for the solicitor, not for us.
What to record before the car leaves the driveway
The IHT407 asks about the car's condition and mileage at the date of death, and that is easy to prove while the car is still there and hard to prove afterwards. Before it is collected:
- photograph the car all round, the interior and the dashboard showing the mileage;
- note the date of death, the registration number and the condition, including any faults;
- save the pages of similar cars for sale that you used to estimate the value, with their dates;
- keep the sale advert and the buyer's receipt, so that the sale date and the gross proceeds are on record.
GOV.UK tells you to keep records of how you valued each asset, and says HMRC's Valuation Office may check valuations and contact you about them. GOV.UK says to tell HMRC about changes in value once the values are final or 18 months after the death, whichever is sooner.
Where a valuation fits in
We value the car; we do not sell it, deal with the DVLA or advise on probate. A date of death valuation fixes the open market value on the day the person died, built from comparable cars and adjusted for the car's condition and mileage as they were then. We need the date of death, the vehicle details and any photos from around that time. Whether HMRC accepts a figure is its decision, and the estate's solicitor can say whether to enclose it. Our guide to open market value for a vehicle in probate explains the term.
Frequently asked questions
Do executors need a valuation to sell a deceased person's car?
No. GOV.UK's steps for selling a vehicle after a death ask for a letter to the DVLA and the right part of the V5C, not a valuation. The estate forms are different: HMRC's IHT407 asks for the car's open market value at the date of death, whether or not it has been sold.
Can an executor sell a car before probate?
GOV.UK does not say for cars. Its probate guidance advises against putting property on the market until you have probate and says you might need probate before dealing with possessions. Ask the estate's solicitor or the DVLA bereavement team before accepting an offer.
Which value goes on the probate forms if I sell the car?
Both. Form IHT407 has one column for the open market value at the date of death and another for the date of sale and gross sale proceeds. The date of death value is the one the Inheritance Tax calculation uses.
What happens to the vehicle tax when an executor sells the car?
GOV.UK says vehicle tax cannot be transferred to a new owner. When you write to the DVLA you say who should receive any vehicle tax refund.
Need the car's value at the date of death?
We prepare date of death valuations from the details and photos you send, with the comparables set out.
Get a price for my date of death valuationYour price is confirmed in writing before any work begins.
Sources: GOV.UK, selling a vehicle after someone dies; GOV.UK, applying for probate; GOV.UK, valuing the estate; HMRC, IHT407; HMRC, IHT400 notes. Checked 26 October 2026.