Residential and Commercial Solicitors in Rickmansworth

Estate Administration Pricing

Sarah Bull is Head of our Private Client team. A full list of our team and their relevant experience and qualifications are as follows:

Sarah Bull – Solicitor

Ruth Garland – Solicitor

Kajan Gurung – Solicitor

Beverley Diamond – Associate

Emily Walshe – Paralegal

Sue Cooper – Legal Assistant

Lauren Collinson – Legal Assistant

Grant of Representation Applications

Applying for a Grant of Probate (where the deceased leaves a valid Will) or a Grant of Letters of Administration (where the deceased did not leave a valid Will).

Our prices:

Type of application	Simple	Medium complexity	High complexity
Our prices	£1,900 plus VAT	£2,500 to £3,500 plus VAT	£3,500 to £5,000 plus VAT
Factors	No Inheritance Tax (IHT) payable The deceased had their permanent home in the UK at the date of death There is no more than one property There are no more than five bank or building society accounts There are no shareholdings Any valid Will is written in the English language	No IHT payable - form IHT400 *1 The deceased had their permanent home in the UK at the date of death There is no more than one property There are no more than seven bank of building society accounts There are no more than two shareholdings Any valid Will is written in the English language	IHT payable - form IHT400 *1 The deceased had their permanent home in the UK at the date of death Any valid Will is written in the English language There are sufficient assets in the estate which can be used to fund the IHT prior to obtaining the Grant and a loan is not required
Timescales *2	6 to 10 weeks	12 to 16 weeks	14 to 24 weeks

*1 “Form IHT400 - Inheritance Tax account” is completed where there’s IHT to pay or there’s no IHT to pay but the application cannot be made via a Legal Statement alone

*2 Time from receipt of full values for the assets and liabilities of the estate.

Disbursements:

Disbursements are additional costs relating to your matter that are payable to third parties. We will ask you to put us in funds so that we can pay the disbursements directly.

Disbursement	Description	Cost
Probate fee	Court fee payable on application	£300 plus 1.50p for each sealed copy required - VAT is not chargeable
Inheritance Tax (IHT)	This is a tax on the estate (the property, money and possessions) of someone who's died. It is charged on the net value of the estate above the threshold of £325,000 (or above £500,000 in certain circumstances)	IHT is generally charged at 40%. More information is available here: https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax
ID search	Identification search for each executor/administrator	£25.00 plus VAT for each search
Valuation fees	It may be necessary to obtain formal valuation of any properties, personal and household chattels and shareholdings	Costs will vary for the type of valuation required and we will obtain an accurate figure for your approval prior to proceeding
Family tree verification fee	Where the deceased did not leave a valid Will, we arrange for a family tree verification search to be undertaken to ensure that the family situation is as we have been informed and that the correct people are making the application	From £100 - VAT may not be chargeable
Asset Search	Where the executors are not sure of the extent of the deceased’s assets or where we as a firm are appointed as professional executors, it may be necessary to carry out an asset	From £185 plus VAT

The work will involve:

We will provide you with a dedicated probate assistant to work on your matter
We will identify the legally appointed executors or administrators
We will identify the type of probate application you will require
Obtaining the relevant documents required to make the application
An initial meeting with you to advise on the terms and the content of the deceased’s Will / intestacy provisions
Writing to the relevant institutions to obtain values for the assets and liabilities
Preparing a schedule of assets and liabilities for your approval
Drafting the inheritance tax papers (see above for which one is required) and drafting the oath or statement of trust. Calculation of IHT, if any, to pay (see note re lifetime gifting below)
Attending you to sign the inheritance tax paperwork
Payment of any IHT and submission of IHT forms to HMRC
Making the application to the Probate Registry

The fee does not include:

Additional work required due to either a technical or other impediment to the Grant being issued by the Probate Registry
Costs associated with expediting applications
The matter becoming protracted
Calculation of lifetime gifting
Administration of any associated Trusts
Anything other than that listed above under ‘The work will involve‘

How long will my application take?

The timescales set out above are estimates and are dependent on how long it takes for any IHT to be paid and how long HMRC and the Probate Registry take to process your application, which changes from time to time. We can provide a more accurate timescale once we have more information and as the matter progresses. We will inform you of an unforeseen extra work and provide you with an estimate for that extra work.

Simple Estate Administration

Once the Grant of Probate or Grant of Letters of Administration has been obtained for you, we can also undertake to collect and distribute the assets on your behalf.

Our prices:

Our prices

15 to 25 hours’ work at £200 to £300 per hour plus VAT

Factors

· Any Will is legally valid

· There is no more than one property

· There are accounts with no more than 5 different financial institutions

· There are no intangible assets (such as Royalties)

· There are no more than 5 beneficiaries

· All beneficiaries are based in the UK

· There are no disputes between beneficiaries

· There are no claims made against the estate by creditors, relatives or others

If any of these key assumptions are incorrect or change over time, we will need to provide you with a revised scope of work, revised timetable and revised fee estimate.

Timescale

On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with in 6 to 8 months. Typically, obtaining the Grant takes 10 to 16 weeks. Collecting assets then follows which can take between 6 and 14 weeks.

Disbursements:

Disbursements are additional costs relating to your matter that are payable to third parties. We will ask you to put us in funds so that we can pay the disbursements directly. You can then be reimbursed those funds from the estate once the Grant has been issued and sufficient assets called in. This list is not exhaustive and other disbursements may apply during the administration period. We will update you on any additional disbursements as soon as we are aware of them.

Disbursement	Description	Cost
Inheritance Tax (IHT)	This is a tax on the estate (the property, money and possessions) of someone who's died. It is charged on the net value of the estate above the threshold of £325,000 (or above £500,000 in certain circumstances)	IHT is charged at 40%. More information is available here: https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax
Family tree verification fee	Where the deceased did not leave a valid Will we arrange for a family tree verification search to be undertaken to ensure that the family situation is as we have been informed and that the correct people are making the application	From £100 - VAT may not be chargeable
Bankruptcy searches	These are searches made with the Land Charges Department for each beneficiary	£2 per beneficiary per distribution
Statutory notices	These are advertisements placed in the London Gazette and a local newspaper to help protect the estate against claims from unknown creditors, relatives and others	Fees average between £150 and £300 including VAT

The work will involve:

Submission of statutory notices if applicable
Collecting the assets and paying outstanding liabilities
Notifying the beneficiaries of their entitlement under the Will or Intestacy and obtaining evidence of identity and address and bank details
Paying any legacies or making an interim distribution to the residuary beneficiaries, if appropriate, subject to clear bankruptcy searches
Preparing Estate Accounts for approval
Paying out the balance of the estate to the residuary beneficiaries

The stages set out above are an indication only and, if some of the stages are not required, the hours required will be at the lower end of the range.

The fee does not include:

Completion of income tax returns for any period prior to the date of death
Completion of income tax returns for the period of administration
Property sale or transfer if applicable
Changes to the legislation during the course of the administration of the estate
Trusts in which the deceased was a beneficiary at the date of death
Trusts set up by the deceased under the Will or Intestacy
If there is a dispute between beneficiaries on division of assets this is likely to lead to an increase in costs.
Any claims made against the Estate
Deeds of Variation for the beneficiaries
Deeds of Appointments
Financial advice on the suitability of the disposal of assets in the estate
Personal taxation of estate beneficiaries
The sale or transfer of the deceased’s interest in a business or farm
Restitution for long term care funding incorrectly paid by the deceased
If the estate consists of any shareholdings (stocks or 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.
Any additional work required due to a technical or other impediment to the Grant being issued by the Probate Registry
Costs associated with expediting the administration
Anything other than that listed above under ‘The work will involve’

If applicable, we will price these and any other requirements separately for you.

When necessary, and in consultation with you, we will obtain such additional advice as is required from appropriately qualified third parties.

How long will this take?

The timescale set out above is a general estimate and we can give you a more accurate timescale once we have more information and as the matter progresses. This is especially relevant where there is a property to be sold. We will update you regularly throughout the matter and if there is any change to the estimated timescale.

Complicated Estate Administration

This includes unusual or complicated applications and the administration of complicated and taxable estates.

The information provided below does not cover all areas of estate administration work and, in the event that it does not, please contact us to discuss your requirements and we will price these accordingly.

Our prices:

Our prices for these matters are calculated by reference partly to the time spent using rates of £200 to £300 per hour (excluding VAT). We generally can give you an accurate estimate once we have a clear indication of the value of the estate or, alternatively, agree a fixed price with you.

Disbursements:

Disbursements are additional costs relating to your matter that are payable to third parties. We will ask you to put us in funds so that we can pay the disbursements directly. You can then be reimbursed those funds from the estate once the Grant has been issued and sufficient assets called in. This list is not exhaustive and other disbursements may apply during the administration period. We will update you on any additional disbursements as soon as we are aware of them.

Disbursement	Description	Cost
Inheritance Tax (IHT)	This is a tax on the estate (the property, money and possessions) of someone who's died. It is charged on the net value of the estate above the threshold of £325,000 (or above £500,000 in certain circumstances)	IHT is charged at 40%. More information is available here: https://www.gov.uk/inheritance-tax
Bankruptcy searches	These are searches made with the Land Charges Department for each beneficiary	£2 per beneficiary living in the UK per distribution. Fees are substantially higher where a beneficiary lives outside the UK and we will give you an accurate figure once we have confirmation of these
Statutory notices	These are advertisements placed in the London Gazette and a local newspaper to help protect the estate against claims from unknown creditors, relatives and others	Fees average between £150 and £300 including VAT and we will obtain an accurate figure for your approval prior to proceeding
Valuation fees	It may be necessary to obtain formal valuation of any properties, personal and household chattels and shareholdings	Costs will vary for the type of valuation required and we will obtain an accurate figure for your approval prior to proceeding

The work will involve:

The fees set out above cover all the work in relation to the following typical key stages of administering an estate:

Registering the death, arranging the funeral. Checking the property is secured
Attending and making regular visits to the deceased’s property to collect asset details, take meter readings and arrange for valuations of the property and chattels
Submission of statutory notices
Paying any IHT
Once the Grant is received, collecting in the assets and paying outstanding liabilities
Notifying the beneficiaries of their entitlement under the Will or Intestacy and obtaining evidence of identity and address and bank details
Paying any legacies or making an interim distribution to the residuary beneficiaries, if appropriate, subject to clear bankruptcy searches
Corresponding with HMRC regarding the property valuation, including liaising with the District Valuer, ensuring that all IHT is paid and obtaining a clearance certificate
Preparing Estate Accounts for approval
Paying out the balance of the estate to the residuary beneficiaries

The stages set out above are an indication only and, if some of the stages are not required, the number of hours required will be reduced.

The fee does not include:

Completion of tax returns for any period prior to the date of death
Completion of income tax returns for the period of administration
Property or land sale or transfer if applicable
If the estate consists of any shareholdings (stocks or 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
Changes to the legislation during the course of the administration of the estate
Trusts in which the deceased was a beneficiary at the date of death
Trusts set up by the deceased under the Will or Intestacy
Deeds of Variation for the beneficiaries
Deeds of Appointments
Financial advice on the suitability of the disposal of assets in the estate
Personal taxation of estate beneficiaries
The sale or transfer of the deceased’s interest in a business or farm
Restitution for long term care funding incorrectly paid by the deceased
Costs associated with expediting any part of the work
Anything other than that listed above under ‘The work will involve’

If applicable, we will price these and any other requirements separately for you.

Our fee assumes that:

There are no unusual funeral requests in the Will and that the body is not being donated for medical research
We are able to speedily identify all assets and liabilities of the estate
There are sufficient assets in the estate directly accessible to fund any IHT payable prior to obtaining the Grant and a loan is not being applied for
There is no technical or other impediment to the Grant being issued by the Probate Registry and the Will being proved is the last Will and testament of the deceased
There are no claims made against the estate by relatives, creditors or others and no caveats lodged at the Court
All beneficiaries reside in the UK and can be identified, traced and are at least 18 years of age and able to understand and sign documentation as required.
There are no material disagreements amongst the beneficiaries and / or the executors / administrators
The deceased’s property is their main residence and in good condition with no outstanding insurance claims
Buyers for the assets, including the property, are found and sales will complete within 6 months of the issue of the Grant
The property was not let at death or continues to be let during the estate administration
The Will was validly executed and there is no partial intestacy
The estate is solvent

If any of these key assumptions are incorrect or change over time, we will need to provide you with a revised scope of work, revised timetable and revised fee estimate.

How long will this take?

The administration of an estate usually takes 12 to 18 months from receipt of full instructions from you. It may take longer if your application is more complex, for example, if there are assets outside the UK or there is a delay in negotiating a sale of any of the assets. This is an estimate only and we will provide a more accurate timescale once we have more information and as the matter progresses. We will update you regularly throughout the matter and if there is any change to the estimated timescale.

“VAT“ stands for Value Added Tax and the current rate of VAT is 20%