Probate Fees
Our team has over 70 years of collective experience in delivering high quality work in all matters relating to wills and estate administration. The team has particular expertise in high value estates and inheritance tax matters.
We have five members of the team who may work on your matter. Regardless of who works on your matter, they will be supervised by Rebecca Lauder, Partner and Head of probate and estate administration. Please see our service page for more information on the people who may work on your matter. https://www.bsglaw.co.uk/wills-probate-estate-planning-solicitors/
Applying for the grant, collecting and distributing the assets
We anticipate this will take between 10 and 18 hours work at £195 per hour. BSG’s total costs are estimated at £1,950-£3,500 excluding VAT / £2340 - £4,000 including VAT at 20%.
The exact cost will depend on the individual circumstances of the matter. For example, if there is one beneficiary and no property, costs will be at the lower end of the range. If there are multiple beneficiaries, a property and multiple bank accounts, costs will be at the higher end.
We will handle the full process for you. This quote is for estates 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 2-5 beneficiaries
There are no disputes between beneficiaries or executors/administrators on the administration of the estate or 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
Disbursements:
Probate application fee of £300 plus £1.50 per sealed copy required
Anti-money laundering check £4 exc VAT (£4.80 inc VAT at 20%)
Bankruptcy-only Land Charges Department searches (£2 per beneficiary)
£69.50 exc VAT (£83.40 inc VAT at 20%) Post in The London Gazette – Protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors.
£82.06 exc VAT (£98.47 inc VAT at 20%) Post in Lancaster Guardian – This also helps to protect against unexpected claims. The advert will need to be posted in the paper local to where the deceased lived. Quotes for other local newspapers provided on request.
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
Potential additional costs
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 cost £1.50 (1 per asset usually).
Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included.
How long will this take?
On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with within 3-6 months. Typically, obtaining the grant of probate takes 6-8 weeks. Collecting assets then follows, which can take between 4-8 weeks. Once this has been done, we can distribute the assets, which normally takes 4-8 weeks.
Fixed Fee Application for Grant of Probate only
We can help you through this difficult process by simply obtaining the Grant of Probate on your behalf.
Breakdown of costs:
Legal fees £750 +VAT at 20% / £900 inc VAT
Disbursements:
Probate court fee of £300 + £1.50 per sealed copy required. No VAT applicable.
Anti-money laundering check per person £4 exc VAT (£4.80 inc VAT at 20%)
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
As part of our fixed fee we will:
Provide you with a dedicated and experienced probate solicitor to work on your matter
Accurately identify the type of Probate application you will require
Complete the Probate Application and the relevant HMRC forms on the basis of information supplied by you
Draft the legal statement of truth
Make the application to the Probate Court on your behalf
Obtain the Probate and securely send two copies to you
Potential additional costs
If an IHT400 form needs to be completed because inheritance tax is due (as opposed to the IHT205 when inheritance tax is not due) there will be an additional cost of up to £400 exc VAT / £480 inc VAT at 20%. We would provide you with a more precise figure before starting work.
If you require us to identify the legally appointed executors or administrators and beneficiaries
If you require us to obtain the relevant documents required to make the application
If you require us to collect and distribute the assets.
If you require us to advise on potential personal liabilities for the Executors/Administrator
How long will this take?
On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with within approximately 6-8 weeks.
Who will deal with my matter?
The members of our probate department and links to their profiles can be found below. Rebecca Lauder is the Supervisor for the probate department.
