Quick answer
The executor mistakes that create the greatest risk usually involve control rather than paperwork volume: acting before formal authority exists, treating use as proof of ownership, keeping an incomplete inventory, mixing estate and personal money, paying selected people too early, overlooking insolvency, guessing who inherits, neglecting tax, and assuming an agent has taken over the executor's responsibility.
How to use this guide
Many errors begin as practical attempts to help a family. The correct response is not to conceal the mistake or create replacement evidence. Stop the unsupported step, preserve the full record, measure what changed, notify the appropriate adviser or authority where required, and obtain advice on an accurate correction before the error spreads into the liquidation and distribution account.
Mistake 1: acting as though nomination is appointment
A will can nominate an executor, but the Administration of Estates Act regulates formal authority through the Master. Section 13 restricts liquidation or distribution without letters of executorship, an authorised endorsement or a direction from the Master.
Before appointment, sensible preservation may include locating the original will, securing keys, protecting an unoccupied property and informing an insurer of the death. Those measures should not be confused with selling an asset, closing an account, signing transfer documents or distributing inheritances.
Control: put the appointment document at the front of the estate file and require its date, scope and any security condition to be checked before each material transaction.
Mistake 2: treating possession as proof of estate ownership
An item found at the deceased's home may belong partly or entirely to a spouse, company, trust, partner, finance provider or another owner. A policy or account may have a beneficiary or contractual structure that requires separate analysis. Recording every item as an estate asset can be as damaging as omitting it.
Control: maintain an ownership column beside the inventory entry. Link the item to title evidence, the matrimonial-property position, agreement, register, statement or other source, and mark disputed or unverified ownership visibly.
Do not resolve an ownership dispute by removing property, changing locks without lawful basis or relying on the loudest family member.
Mistake 3: using a rough or static inventory
The initial J243 inventory is not the end of asset discovery. Bank interest, refunds, debts owed to the deceased, business interests, household goods, digital assets, tax amounts and later-discovered property can alter values, solvency, remuneration and distribution.
Section 26 places estate property, books and documents under the appointed executor's custody or control, subject to recognised rights of possession or retention. An executor needs a living asset register showing source, owner, date-of-death value, current value where relevant, location, custodian, insurance, restrictions and the latest verification date.
Control: review the register against statements, title records, tax material and creditor information before the account is drafted and again before distribution.
Mistake 4: mixing estate transactions with personal money
Using a personal or business account may seem quicker, but it destroys the clean audit trail and can make reimbursements, tax, cash reconciliation and the account harder to prove. Section 28 provides a banking framework for estate money handled by an executor.
Control: use the account in the estate's name as required, number payment vouchers and reconcile each statement. Verify changes to beneficiary or supplier banking details independently. Keep the invoice, approval, payment proof and account entry together.
If money has already moved through the wrong account, do not delete the evidence. Reconstruct the full flow and seek advice on the accurate disclosure and corrective entry.
Mistake 5: paying an heir or creditor before the process supports it
Family pressure, a hardship request or a familiar creditor does not create automatic priority. The full process includes notice to creditors, assessment of claims, the liquidation and distribution account, examination, inspection and the point at which the estate becomes distributable. Tax and secured claims may add further constraints.
Control: require every proposed payment to state the payee, legal basis, account treatment, supporting evidence, cash effect and authority. Do not label a beneficiary advance as a harmless loan without reviewing its consequences.
Early payment becomes especially dangerous when the estate may be insolvent. Section 34 creates a distinct deceased-estate insolvency process; selective payment can prejudice the lawful order of distribution.
Mistake 6: treating submitted claims as automatically valid—or automatically invalid
Section 29 requires publication of a notice calling on creditors to lodge claims within the specified period. A claim still needs to be identified, supported and assessed. Rejecting it without a recorded reason can be as unsafe as paying it without proof.
Control: maintain a claims register with claimant, amount, source, security, supporting documents, status, reasons and correspondence. Keep disputed portions separate from admitted portions. Obtain advice where prescription, security, maintenance, litigation or insolvency affects the treatment.
Do not promise a creditor payment before the estate's cash and legal position are understood.
Mistake 7: deciding succession from memory or family agreement
The will, its formal validity and the law of intestate succession determine different questions. A family tree is evidence to investigate, not a substitute for legal status. Customary marriage, adoption, parentage, divorce, representation, a predeceased heir or a partially intestate estate can change the analysis.
Control: preserve the original will and codicils without alteration, obtain civil-status and relationship records, and keep disputed persons on a separate issue list. If no valid will governs, apply the Intestate Succession Act to verified facts rather than inventing an equal-share arrangement.
A private consensus may sometimes support a lawful agreement reached with proper advice, but it should not be represented as the will or statutory scheme.
Mistake 8: leaving tax until the end
SARS treats pre-death tax, post-death deceased-estate income and estate duty as connected but distinct workstreams. Current guidance also describes the deceased-estate compliance letter as the final SARS confirmation after obligations are brought into compliance.
Control: open the estate case, verify the representative, track reference and case numbers, separate tax periods, keep valuation and deduction support, and place every assessment or information request on the action register.
Do not distribute cash reserved for tax merely because the calculation is inconvenient or no assessment has yet been received. SARS identifies circumstances in which an executor may be personally liable for estate duty after disposing of funds that could have met the liability; that risk must be assessed on the actual facts.
Mistake 9: delegating without retaining oversight
An administration agent or professional may perform much of the work, but the executor still needs to know what was submitted, what authority supports payments, where originals are held and what remains outstanding. A vague monthly message saying that the matter is “with the Master” is not a control record.
Control: use a written mandate, task owner, approval threshold, reporting cycle and file-access rule. Require proof of submissions and copies of requisitions. Reconcile invoices to delivered work and preserve a handover process if the service relationship ends.
Do not sign a blank form or approve an account that you have not reviewed merely because a professional prepared it.
Mistake 10: weakening the evidence trail after a problem
Editing a statement, backdating a minute, deleting a message, recreating a voucher or making a public accusation can turn an administration mistake into a credibility, privacy or litigation problem.
Control: preserve the original, create a dated incident note, distinguish direct knowledge from information supplied by others, and store sensitive identity and banking material securely. If fraud or cyber compromise is suspected, preserve logs and verify access before alerting the suspected channel.
A safe recovery sequence after an error
When something has gone wrong:
- stop any repeat transaction or unsupported instruction within your lawful control;
- preserve originals, statements, messages, access logs and appointment records;
- calculate the money, property, person and stage affected;
- write a neutral chronology without assigning guilt;
- identify the Master, SARS, bank, insurer, court or professional process involved;
- obtain independent advice where authority, conflict or personal exposure is possible;
- correct records transparently rather than overwriting history; and
- add a practical control so the same failure cannot recur.
Not every mistake leads to removal, liability or litigation. The response should be proportionate to the evidence, legal duty and harm, while remaining honest about what happened.
Important limitation
This mistake-prevention guide does not determine whether an executor breached a duty, must repay money, should be removed or will face any civil, tax or criminal consequence.
FAQs
May a person nominated in a will distribute estate property immediately?
No. Nomination is not the formal authority required to liquidate or distribute the estate. Check the letters, endorsement or Master's direction and its scope before any material administration step.
Is it safe to use a personal bank account for small estate expenses?
It creates an avoidable audit and reconciliation risk. Follow the statutory estate-account framework, retain vouchers and keep estate and personal transactions separate.
Can an executor pay heirs before the estate account becomes distributable?
Do not assume so. Creditor, tax, account, inspection, objection, liquidity and authority requirements must be satisfied, and an early payment can prejudice the estate or other interested people.
Does appointing an estate agent transfer the executor's legal responsibility?
No automatic transfer occurs. The executor should retain a written mandate, approval controls, access to the full file, proof of submissions and enough oversight to understand each material decision.
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Legal note
This article is general legal information for South African readers. It is not legal advice. Speak to a qualified legal professional about your specific facts before taking action.