Probate Costs

Please note that the following information is for guidance only.  We will provide you with a formal estimate for the costs involved in administering an estate after an initial consultation with you, once we have all the necessary information to hand relating to the estate.

Applying for the grant, collecting, and distributing the assets

We anticipate that in a simple estate administration, making an application for a grant of probate, collecting, and distributing the assets will take between 16 to 24 hours of work. The level of fees for this work will depend on which fee earner is dealing with the matter and their level of expertise. There are currently 6 fee earners in the department whose rates are as follows:

Gemma Burdis	Paralegal	£200.00 plus VAT charged at 20%
Charlie Jones-Connor	Paralegal	£230.00 plus VAT charged at 20%
Stephanie Chung	Associate	£295.00 plus VAT charged at 20%
Sherelle O'Brien	Associate	£295.00 plus VAT charged at 20%
Colleen Dooney	Director	£310.00 plus VAT charged at 20%

Please note that these rates change on annual basis and are to be considered in conjunction with the potential additional costs listed further down this page.

The range of fees is therefore between £4,000 plus VAT to £7,500 plus VAT (charged at 20%) depending on who deals with the matter for you.  Wherever possible, we try to allocate work to the most appropriate fee earner with the most suitable level of expertise so that the more straightforward and simple probates are dealt with by fee earners with lower hourly rates of charge.

We will handle the full process for you.  These estimates are for estates where:

• There is a valid will,
• There is no more than one property,
• There are no more than 3 bank or building society accounts,
• There are no other intangible assets,
• There are 1 to 3 beneficiaries,
• There are no disputes between beneficiaries on the division of assets (if disputes arise, it is likely to lead to an increase in costs),
• There is no inheritance tax payable, and the executors do not need to submit a detailed account to HMRC direct,
• There are no claims made against the estate.

Disbursements are costs relating to your matter which are payable to third parties, such as Court fees. We will handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smooth process.

Disbursements likely to be incurred in this type of work, which are not subject to VAT, include:

• Probate application fee of £300.00 plus £1.50 per sealed copy,
• £100.00 fee to place a notice in the London Gazette to protect against unexpected claims for unknown creditors,
• £300.00 to £500.00 to place a notice in a local newspaper to protect against unexpected claims.  The costs vary depending upon the newspaper in which the notice is printed.

Disbursements likely to be incurred in this type of work, which are subject to VAT charged at 20%, include:

• Land Registry search fees of £3.00 plus VAT charged at 20% per search,
• Bankruptcy search fees of £6.00 plus VAT charged at 20% per search,
• An administrative fee of £8.00 plus VAT charged at 20% per client/beneficial owner charged at the outset of the matter for us to complete our anti-money laundering checks in compliance with regulatory requirements.

Work included

As part of the costs estimated above, we will:

• Provide you with a dedicated and experienced probate solicitor or paralegal to work on your matter,
• Identify the legally appointed executors or administrators and beneficiaries,
• Accurately identify the type of probate application you will require,
• Obtain the relevant documents required to make the application,
• Draft a legal statement for submission to the Probate Registry,
• Make the application to the Probate Registry on your behalf,
• Obtain the probate and securely send two copies to you,
• Collect and distribute all the assets in the estate in accordance with the terms of the Will.

Potential Additional Costs

The following factors are likely to make the estate administration more complex and will therefore lead to an increase in the costs estimated above.  This could range significantly depending on the estate and how it is to be dealt with:

• If there is no will,
• If the estate consists of any shareholdings (stocks and bonds),
• If the deceased had an interest in a trust during their lifetime,
• If the estate includes foreign property,
• If the estate includes more than one property,
• If the deceased made lifetime gifts during the 7 years preceding their death which need to be reported to HM Revenue & Customs,
• If the estate is insolvent,
• If an IHT400 account needs to be prepared and inheritance tax paid to HM Revenue & Customs,
• If we deal with matters relating to income tax, benefits agencies, and private pensions ,
• If the estate consists of an interest in a business or a farm,
• If tax reliefs are to be claimed such as transferrable nil rate bands and residence nil rate bands, business property relief, agricultural property relief, spouse exemption and/or charity exemptions,
• If there are more than 3 beneficiaries,
• If the deceased’s financial affairs were not in order when they died,
• If there are any legal disputes (claims against the estate or claims by the estate),
• If income tax returns to the date of death are required,
• If we need to organise the clearance of a house,
• If we arrange insurance for houses and contents,
• If we are to organise professional valuations of assets.

Please note that this list is not exhaustive.  We can give you a more accurate estimate once we have more information. 

Please also note that:

• If any additional copies of the grant are required, they will cost £1.50 each (one per asset usually).
• Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included and will be dealt with separately by our Conveyancing team.

How long will the process take?

On average, a simple estate can be administered within 6 to 12 months. Typically, obtaining the grant of probate can take 3 to 7 months. Collecting assets following the grant being issued can take between 4 to 12 weeks. Distribution of those assets to beneficiaries would normally take in the region of 2 to 8 weeks.

Complex estates are often a longer process, and on average would be expected to take between 12 to 24 months to administer.

Team

Our team has over 165 years of collective experience in delivering high quality work in all matters relating to wills and estate administration. The team has expertise in high value estates, trust administration, estate planning, and inheritance tax matters.  We have 5 members of the team who may work on your matter. Regardless of who works on your matter, they will be supervised by a senior fee earner. Colleen Dooney, Private Client Operations Director, has overall responsibility for the team.