What services does this fee include:

The following steps are included:

• Identify the legally appointed executors or administrators and beneficiaries and establish the extent of the estate by identifying the various assets and liabilities
• Prepare the Grant of Probate and have it sworn by the executor(s) and submitted to the appropriate Probate Registry together with the Will, if there is one
• Once the Grant is received from the Probate Registry it is submitted to the various organisations with which assets are held in order to secure the release of or the sale of the assets.
• All estate liabilities have to be paid before the estate can be distributed among the beneficiaries;
• Confirming that tax is paid up to date and there are no outstanding HMRC claims;
• Preparation of the Estate accounts and distribution of the estate in accordance with the terms of the Will.

Potential additional costs include:

• If there is no will or the estate consists of any share holdings (stocks and bonds) there is likely to be additional costs that could range significantly depending on the estate and how it is to be dealt with. We can give you a more accurate quote once we have more information.
• If any additional copies of the grant are required, they will each cost 50p (1 per asset usually).
• Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included.

The experience of the people who may carry out the work for you

We provide links to our Team Members’ profiles on our Website.

The typical timescales and key stages of the purchase transaction

Typically, obtaining the grant of probate can take between 2-6 months.

On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with to conclusion within 9-12 months.

Probate and Estate Administration

The exact cost for the Probate and estate administration work we undertake will depend ultimately on the individual circumstances of the matter. For example, if the estate is not complicated and for example, there is only one beneficiary and no property and limited assets to collect, costs will be at the lower end of the range. If there are multiple beneficiaries, a property and multiple bank accounts and other assets the costs will be at the higher end.

This information about the costs is for estates where:
• There is a valid will
• There is no more than one property
• There are no intangible assets
• There are no disputes between beneficiaries on division of assets. If disputes arise this is likely to lead to an increase in costs
• There is no inheritance tax payable and the executors do not need to submit a full account to HMRC
• There are no claims made against the estate and the estate does not include:
A business, farms, farmhouses or farmland, an interest in another estate, loans or mortgages payable to the deceased, foreign assets, assets held in trust, national Heritage assets or unlisted stocks and shares and control holdings.