Who is responsible for probate?

[pinkerton]

A solicitor draws up a will and is named as executor. After the death of the person who's will it was, the solicitor has all of the financial information in connection with the estate, and executes the will accordingly. The estate is then distributed to the beneficiaries in accordance with the terms of the will. Several months later a company that had been paying a pension to the deceased writes to one of the beneficiaries claiming that a pension payment had been made in error after the death, and claiming the alleged overpayment be refunded by that beneficiary. If an overpayment had in fact been made, should that not have been picked up by the solicitor before applying for probate, and therefore the solicitor be responsible for repayment?

[Canary42]

Using your logic, the mistake should have been picked up by the pension company so THEY must make the repayment (to themselves).

[Barmaid]

Unfortunately, the beneficiaries are liable to refund it. Were any receipts and indemnities given and in what terms?

The pension company can choose to pursue one or all of the beneficiaries - clearly it is fairer if each pay their share.

I imagine a professional executor would have published notices under s27 Trustee Act, which expressly provides that the person to whom the money is owed can trace it to the beneficiaries. Those notices only protect the executor from having to refund it personally. Even if he hasn't published those notices and the pension company went after him, he still has a right of reimbursement from the beneficiaries.