Probate Fees

At Carr & Co Solicitors, we aim to be transparent with the cost of our services. Below, you can find the probate fees we charge and the different conditions that will affect this.

Applying for the grant, collecting and distributing the assets

We anticipate that this will usually take between 10 hours and 40 hours of work with total costs estimated at between £2000 plus VAT and £10,000 plus VAT.

The exact cost will depend on the individual circumstances of the matter. For example, if there is only one beneficiary and no property, costs will be at the lower end of the range. If there are multiple beneficiaries, property and multiple bank accounts, costs will be at the higher end. These charges are applicable to those cases where there is no dispute and all the assets of the estate are held within the UK.

This estimate is based upon us handling the full process for you. This estimate of costs is where:

• There is a valid will
• There is no more than one property
• There are no more than 5 bank or building society accounts
• There are no other intangible assets
• There are no more than 3 beneficiaries
• There is no dispute 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

We charge for time spent on your matter based on an agreed hourly rate for the person who undertakes the work.

Our current hourly rates are:

The services included cover the below key stages:

• Identification and valuation of assets and debts
• Preparation and submission of the appropriate Inheritance Tax account (and arrangements for payment of tax where applicable)
• Preparation and submission of the application for the Grant of Probate (or Letters of Administration)
• Collection of assets (or arranging transfer to beneficiaries, as appropriate)
• Payment of debts due at the date of death and expenses arising as part of the administration
• Payment of any legacies contained in the Will
• Attending to any income or capital gains tax requirements (if applicable)
• Preparation of an Estate Account
• Distribution of the Estate to the beneficiaries

The above fees do not include our charges for selling properties. This is because it is more economical for the estate for this to be dealt with by our specialist Residential Property Department.

Disbursements

These are payments to 3rd parties and are in addition to costs set out above and consist of:

• Probate application fee £300
• Additional copies of the Grant £1.50 per copy
• Bankruptcy-only land charges Department searches (£6 per beneficiary)
• Post in the London Gazette and local press protecting against unexpected claims from unknown creditors £174 although these can vary depending upon the charges of the local press.

Bills are usually paid by the estate and are issued and payable upon obtaining Grant of Probate and final winding up of the estate. Average estates that fall within this range are dealt with within 6 -12 months. Typically, obtaining the Grant of Probate takes 8 -12 weeks. Collecting assets then follows which can take between 12 – 32 weeks depending upon the time it takes to sell any property. Once this has been done, we can distribute the assets which usually takes 4 – 6 weeks but can take longer. We have acted on behalf of simple estates and complex estates with assets around the world. For more information or to book a free no-obligation appointment with one of our probate experts contact us today.