Probate service fees

Information relating to fees and expenses and the work involved in connection with the application for a Grant of Probate or Letters of Administration and thereafter dealing with the administration of the estate if needed.

We can help you through this difficult process by obtaining the Grant of Probate on your behalf. We can also settle the debts of the estate and handle the collection and distribution of assets on your behalf.

How much does our probate service cost?

We offer two different services at different costs.

Grant of Probate Only

Firstly, we offer a “Grant Only” service. You can instruct us on the basis that we will just obtain the Grant of Probate only on your behalf and then you will be responsible for paying the debts in the estate and collecting and distributing the assets. This would involve us doing everything to obtain the Grant of Probate, by putting together and submitting the application and also following the application through the Courts until the Grant is issued.

The fee for the service starts from £1,100 + VAT for simple estates.

Comprehensive Estate Administration Service.

This would involve us obtaining the Grant of Probate on your behalf and then making sure that all debts are paid, and all of the assets are dealt with. This could include closing bank accounts, selling shares, selling or transferring property and paying funeral expenses and utility bills. We would then distribute the estate funds to those who inherit under the Will. It is essentially the most complete package and ensures that the estate is finalised properly and distributed according to the Will or the Rules of Intestacy.

The fee for this is based on a small percentage of the value of the estate, generally between 1% and 5%. We base this on the actual work involved in administering the estate and so we would always encourage you to have a free no-obligation initial meeting with us so that we can give you a tailored and accurate quote.

Disbursements

There will also be disbursements to meet as a part of the process. These are fees paid to other organisations, such as the Probate Registry. Disbursements will vary from one estate to another and they do sometimes change.

The disbursements payable include, but are not limited to, the following:

There is a fee payable to the Probate Registry for the Probate application which is currently £300.
There is a fee of £16 for each sealed copy of the Grant of Probate that you need. It is generally best to have several copies in case one gets lost.
There is a fee to place a notice in the London Gazette to invite companies to come forward about any debts that are owed to them by the deceased person. The fee for this can change but is in the region of £200 to £350.
There can also be Land Registry fees when transferring property and this will vary depending on the value of the property.

Disbursements will be met by estate funds, so you will not be out of pocket.

Timescale

The time that it takes to deal with an estate can vary significantly. If the estate assets are complex, it will usually mean that the estate will take more time to deal with.

For a “Grant Only” service, the main time delay is with the Probate Registry. They can take up to 16 weeks to issue a Grant of Probate once it has been applied for, but sometimes it can be issued sooner than this.

Where we are instructed to obtain the Grant of Probate and carry out the administration of the estate, this can take a matter of months and sometimes it will take over a year to complete. This is because we need to apply for the Grant of Probate, wait up to 16 weeks for it to be issued and then use the Grant of Probate to deal with the assets (including selling or transferring property) and settle the debts. This involves a lot of third parties which can cause delays. The estate then needs to be paid out to the beneficiaries under the Will.

We aim to carry out the administration of the estate as efficiently and quickly as we are able to and will process the estate funds without any unnecessary delay.

If you have any further questions about our probate services, please telephone us on 01752668246 or email us at enquiries@gardandco.com