Pricing Information

Juliet Hibbert : £235 plus VAT at 20% per hour. 

Helen Green: £235 plus VAT at 20% per hour.

Typically, the work up to obtaining the Grant of Probate takes between 8 and 15 hours. That means that, typically, our costs for obtaining the Grant will be between £1,880 plus VAT at 20% and £3525 plus VAT at 20%.

Once the Grant has been obtained, typically the work to collect in assets, pay debts, finalise the administration of and distribute the estate, takes a further 8 to 15 hours work. Typically, our costs for this work will be a further £1,880 plus VAT at 20% to £3,525 plus VAT at 20%.

Where the Firm is appointed as an Executor we will charge a higher hourly rate. 

The exact number of hours it will take to complete the work depends on a variety of factors. Those factors include, but are not limited to :-

• Whether there is a valid will.
• The complexity of the Will.
• The number of properties.
• The complexity of the deceased’s financial affairs including the number of bank and building society accounts and other investments.
• The number of beneficiaries.
• Whether there are any missing beneficiaries.
• Whether any of the beneficiaries are minors.
• Whether the executors need to submit a full account to HMRC.
• Whether inheritance tax is payable.
• Whether the deceased had an interest in any trusts.
• Whether the deceased made any gifts during their lifetime.
• Whether there are any disputes between beneficiaries about the division of assets.
• Whether any claims are made against the estate

We stress that these examples are not a complete list of the potentially relevant factors. Some relevant factors may not be apparent at the outset, but may arise during the administration of the estate.

The payments out which we will, typically, have to make are :-

• Online identification evidence verification fee : £2.72 plus VAT at 20% per individual.
• Probate court fee : currently £273 but subject to government change.
• Additional copies of the Grant if required : £1.50 each – usually 1 per asset.
• Bankruptcy-only Land Charges Department searches : £2 plus VAT at 20% for each beneficiary.
• Statutory advertisements in The London Gazette and a local newspaper to help protect against unexpected claims from unknown creditors and others : approximately £250 plus VAT at 20%.

Unless we have confirmed to the contrary, our work will include :-

• Advice in relation to the likely inheritance tax charge (if any) on the estate.
• Liaising with the personal representatives and agents agreed to by them (e.g. accountant, chartered surveyor and financial adviser).
• Finding out what assets and debts there are in the estate and preparing, from information supplied, HMRC’s inheritance tax papers and the Oath leading to the Grant of Probate.
• Submitting inheritance tax papers to HMRC and applying for the Grant.
• Dealing, from information supplied, with HMRC in relation to the income tax affairs of the deceased, and for the administration period of the estate.
• Collecting in the assets, paying the debts, legacies and expenses and distributing the estate to the beneficiaries.

Our work will not include :-

• Dealing with the sale or transfer of property (residential or commercial) in the estate is not included in the Probate Price Information – please see our Residential Conveyancing Price Information for details of these costs.
• The provision of tax advice in relation to any aspect of the matter beyond advice in relation to the likely inheritance tax charge (if any) on the estate. That would be a matter for further specialist advice from this firm or elsewhere, should you choose.

We do stress that, by providing this information, we are not providing a fixed fee quote.

We reserve the right to revise the estimates given above for our costs upwards on our notification to you if :-

• Any relevant factors prove to be significant.
• The work proves to take more than the time estimates referred to above.
• We are required to carry out any work outside the scope of our original instructions.

We will let you know if we have to do or anticipate having to do any additional work.

Timescales:

How long it will take from receipt of your instructions until finalisation of the administration of the estate will depend on a number of factors. However, and on average, the process takes between 6 and 12 months.