Wills & Probate Prices & Costs

Application for Grant of Probate, Collecting in and Distributing the Assets

Our fees to carry out work for a straight-forward estate, anticipated to take from between 10 – 20 hours of our work to complete are at £280 ( or £336 inc. VAT) per hour (for a senior adviser). The total costs are likely to be £2,500 – £4,000 (or £3,000- £4,800 inc. VAT ).

The exact cost will depend on the individual circumstances of the matter.

Disbursements are additional to this (see below).

Factors that may alter this figure so that costs may reduce or rise, include:

that a junior professional may carry out aspects of the work at a lesser hourly rate;
where there is one beneficiary and no property to administer and the matter is straight-forward;
where there are multiple beneficiaries and multiple assets to include several bank accounts, investments or properties;
degree of complexity of paperwork and tax issues;
unforeseen matters that arise for example; large amounts of correspondence from various parties.

Work involved in the straight-forward administration of an estate may be:

that there is a valid Will and Pinniger Finch is not the Executor
no more than one property
no more than 3 bank or building society accounts
no other intangible assets
up to 4 beneficiaries
the process is amicable and no disputes between beneficiaries arise on division of the assets. Disputes of any nature, do tend to increase your costs
no Inheritance Tax is payable and the Executors do not need to submit a full account to HMRC
no claims are made against the estate
all assets are located in England and Wales and there are no assets abroad (foreign assets)

Disbursements

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, for example:

Application fee for Grant of Probate – £300 plus £1.50 per copy (if needed)
Bankruptcy-only Land Charges Department searches – £6 per beneficiary (UK fee) and variable for international fees
Advert post in the London Gazette and local newspapers – £510.72 (this protects again unexpected claims from unknown creditors)
Secure postage to send the original Will to the Probate Registry – £10
Valuation fees for chattels and property (if required)

Potential Additional Costs:

We will explain any additional or increased costs to you once we have fuller information, for example:

where there is no Will
the estate includes shareholdings (such as stocks and bonds); there may in some cases, be significant additional cost dependent upon the estate and how it is to be managed
additional copies of the Grant are required – £1.50 per copy (1 per asset usually).
dealing with a sale or transfer of a property in the estate
enquiries by or to the Department for Work and Pensions
where the estate includes extensive debt or liabilities, we will require further information for a more accurate estimate of the potential cost
the estate includes businesses or farms or land
Should Pinniger Finch act as executor, additional fees called ‘Value Element’ may apply. We shall explain this at the time of your instructions

Time Taken

On average, a straight-forward estate may take between 6-12 months, depending on number and type of assets. Typically, obtaining Grant of Probate from date of application to the Probate Registry, can take 4-6 weeks. [Where there is a house to clear, this can take several months].

Collection of assets then takes between 4-6 weeks. Distribution of those assets can take 4-6 weeks.

*The below is an average hourly rate: The specific rate will depend on the person carrying out the work. Hourly Rates are currently:

Directors /solicitors £280 (or £336 inc. VAT

FCILEx £225 (£270 inc. VAT), CILEX and other legal executives £215 (£258 inc. VAT) and Trainees/Paralegals £150 (£180 inc. VAT).

In some cases it is not advisable to distribute until at least six months after the Grant of Probate. If this is applicable to your case, we will let you know.

Probate – Grant only (Fixed Fee)

We can obtain the Grant (only) for you – £1,200 ( £1,420 inc. VAT).

Disbursements are not included in the fixed fee. Disbursements for obtaining a grant of probate are:

Probate Court fee of £300 plus £1.50 per copy
Chattels and property valuation fees (if required)
Secure postage to send the original Will to the Probate Registry – £10

Our Fixed Fee includes:

a dedicated and experienced Solicitor or Legal Executive to work on your matter
Identifying the legally appointed Executors or Administrators and beneficiaries
Accurately identifying the type of Probate application you will require
Complete the Probate application
Draft the Statement of Truth or complete the PA1P
Make the application to the Probate Registry on your behalf
Obtain the Probate and securely send copies to you

The Probate Registry currently advises that Grants of Probate may be issued within 16 weeks of receiving all the documentation and fee and on average, we find that work, from receiving your instructions and all of your documentation to Grant, can take between 2-4 months.