At Hepburn Delaney, we only charge for the time taken to administer an estate, and we do not base our fees on the value of the estate. Managing the estate of a loved one is a very personal process and every estate is individual. To help you understand the costs involved, we have provided a guide to our Probate pricing for a simple uncontested estate below. We tailor each case to you and we can undertake as much or as little of the work as you would like us to. The prices shown are therefore only intended to provide an estimated guideline and you should contact us directly to discuss your specific requirements if you would like assistance with an estate matter.
We always recommend arranging a meeting at one of our offices, over video or phone with our specialist inheritance solicitors to discuss the estate. They will provide you with a detailed estimate of costs and give you an opportunity to learn more about us.
There are two main services we can offer for Uncontested Probate:
Applying for a Grant
This involves:
- Advising you on the information which will be required to prepare the application.
- Using the information which you have collated and passed over to us to complete the necessary HRMC inheritance tax forms and other Grant application papers.
- Submitting the papers to HMRC and the Probate Registry and obtaining the Grant of Representation.
- Passing the copies of the Grant over to you so that you can complete the rest of the administration yourself
Full Administration of the Estate
This involves:
- Registering the death with all the asset holders and collating the necessary valuations.
- Dealing with the HMRC and Probate Registry forms and making the application for the Grant.
- Once the Grant is obtained, arranging for the encashment of the assets, including the release of funds from bank accounts, the sale of shares and investments, the sale of any property etc. The funds would be collected into our client account, saving you the need to open a designated executors account with your bank.
- Once all the assets have been collected, any debts and liabilities of the estate will be paid.
- All the deceased’s tax matters will be finalised and any necessary tax returns filed. This will include finalising their inheritance tax, income tax, and capital gains tax, if necessary.
- We will also prepare a detailed set of Estate Accounts showing all the money which has been collected in and paid out on behalf of the estate and this will show each beneficiary how the share due to them has been calculated.
- Once all the above matters have been dealt with, the final distribution of the estate can be made.
In this estimate we assume all the paperwork is provided to Hepburn Delaney and:
- There is a valid Will
- There is no more than one property
- There are no more than two bank or building society accounts
- There are no other intangible assets
- There are no more than two beneficiaries
- 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
For the Grant only service, we anticipate this will take between 5 and 6 hours at £300 per hour. Total fees estimated at between £1,500 and £1,800 + VAT (at 20%). This is an estimate and not a fixed fee.
For a full administration service, we anticipate this will take between 10 and 12 hours at £300 per hour. Total fee estimated between £3,000 – £3,600 + VAT (at 20%) to conclude the full administration of the estate. This is an estimate and not a fixed fee.
The above scenario is a very straight forward example of probate.
Complex Estates
Many probates are more involved than the above guide. For example, the deceased may have held shares, premium bonds, investment funds, or private pensions. There are often a number of beneficiaries, or charitable gifts, and quite often a trust in the Will which adds a further layer of complication. If the deceased made gifts during their lifetime then this will also give rise to another avenue of investigation, as all gifts must be disclosed on the application papers.
Therefore, where there are any additional complicating factors then the costs will be more than those estimated above. For estates where Hepburn Delaney find the deceased’s affairs are not known to others and we have to investigate all the assets and liabilities ourselves then the costs will also be higher.
As an example to help you understand the fees in this example, Hepburn Delaney has recently completed a probate where our tasks not only included establishing the extent of the estate, but also registering the deceased’s death, arranging the funeral/memorial service, arranging the house clearance, auctioning off of valuables and arranging the sale of the property. The cost to obtain grant of probate was £14,000 + VAT (at 20%) and disbursements with the full administration costs concluding at £20,000 + VAT (at 20%) and disbursements.
We can be flexible in our approach and can agree with you which elements of the estate administration we will carry out on your behalf, and which elements of the work you wish to do yourself in order to keep costs to a minimum. Please therefore always contact us directly to obtain a specific estimate of our costs for dealing with your particular matter.
Timescales
The probate process is heavily reliant on third parties, such as banks, HMRC and the Probate Registry. It is therefore very difficult to say how long the administration of any particular estate will take. It is however often the case that the administration of even a very straightforward non taxable estate can take in excess of 12 months. Where inheritance tax is payable we would hope to collate the necessary information and file the inheritance tax return within 6 months of the date of death. Once the inheritance tax return is filed it can take up to 20 weeks for the Grant of Probate to be issued. In most cases where there are no complications we would hope to complete the administration within 12 months of the issue of the Grant of Probate.
Disbursements
As well as our professional fees, we may also incur disbursements and expenses which are payments we have to make to third parties on your behalf which are added to the cost. These include things such as Court fees and postage fees. We have set out below the disbursements and expenses that are the most common. However, this list may not be exhaustive and in some circumstances we may not know that a disbursement is required until later in the matter. If this is the case, then we will notify you of the anticipated disbursement once we become aware that it will be necessary.
Disbursement/expenses type Cost VAT (20%) Total
Court probate fees £300 £0.00 £300
Land Registry fees £7.00 £1.40 £8.40
Trustee Act Notices £250-£400 £50-£80 £300-£480
Financial Asset Search £195 £39 £234
Certainty Will Search £105 £21 £126
Tracked postage fees per item £8.95 £1.79 £10.74 (variable depending on size and weight)
Bankruptcy Search £6 £1.20 £7.20 (each copy)
Sealed copes of Grant £1.50 £0.30 £1.80 (each copy)
The Next Steps
To contact us, please:
Call 01442 218090
Send an email to info@hepburndelaney.co.uk
Click on the link and Contact the Inheritance Team
