Our wills and probate experts have many years’ experience of dealing with such matters and can offer sympathetic, practical and professional support to get you through the process.
We can help you obtain any of the documents you may need, including a grant of probate or letters of administration, and will administer the estate as smoothly and efficiently as possible for you. We’ll offer you a free initial appointment to discuss matters, whether you are the personal representative or beneficiary of a will. If we think you don’t need our help to deal with the estate effectively, and we can point you in the right direction, we’ll tell you and there will be no charge for that first meeting.
If you do need help, we’ll explain exactly what is required and estimate as accurately as possible the likely costs of instructing us to act on your behalf.
What is probate?
Probate is the term applied to the process of winding up the estate of someone who has died.
When you die, a person or people (up to four) are responsible for ensuring that your assets and liabilities are dealt with in accordance with your will, or, if you haven’t left a will, with the rules of intestacy.
If you made a will, these people are known as executors, and you are likely to have chosen them. If you haven’t made a will, they are called administrators. Collectively they are known as personal representatives.
You will need to obtain a grant of representation from the Probate Registry. This is a legal document offering proof that you are entitled to handle the deceased’s estate. It will allow you to handle the estate fully. For example, you’ll be able to use the grant of representation to withdraw funds from bank accounts.
There are three types of grant of representation.
We can help you to obtain a grant of representation and can deal with the estate of the deceased.
You will need to apply for a grant if:
In some cases a grant is not needed at all, this is usually when the person who died left very little assets.
If you’re the executor of a will, you will need to provide the following documentation (if not already retained by Metcalfe David Eyres to be granted probate:
Metcalfe David Eyres will then prepare an oath, promising that the information you have given is true to the best of your knowledge, for you to swear in order to apply for the grant.
You will receive the grant in the post about 10 days after it is sent to the Probate Registry – assuming there are no IHT issues.
The Probate Registry is the section of the courts that issues grants of probate and letters of administration. The principal office is in Central London, and there are several district registries and sub-registries.
This varies depending on the size of an estate. It can take months for someone to be in a position to apply for probate – for example, by searching for a will and taking stock of all assets for the inheritance tax form.
If the estate is small and simple (for example, cash and personal possessions) and there are no issues or complications, the grant will usually be received within about 8 weeks. For larger estates involving property and multiple types of assets, it can take several further
months.
An executor is a person nominated in a will to administer the estate of someone who has died. There may be one or several executors. Executors aren’t necessarily beneficiaries of the will.
There’s no legal obligation to force an executor to act. An executor can renounce probate but can be prevented from doing so if they have already intermeddled in an estate.
The grant of representation is the document that gives an executor authority to act on behalf of the person who’s died, to distribute their estate.
This is another name for the grant of representation, (or letters of administration, if you’re an administrator when there is no will, rather than an executor).
The people named as executors in the will can apply for probate. If there are no executors named in the will, or the named executors aren’t willing or able to act, then they can appoint someone to do it on their behalf. Alternatively, if there are no executors or there is no will, an administrator can apply for letters of administration (instead of probate) so they can deal with the estate. An administrator would usually be a next of kin such as spouse, child or relative, but usually not an unmarried partner.
There isn’t a time limit on applying for a grant of probate, but there is a time limit on filing the inheritance tax form with HMRC – and that is 6 months from the end of the month in which the person died. If the tax form is filed late, interest may be added and if it is filed more than 18 months after the end of the month following death there is a risk of getting a fine.
The cost of administering an estate will depend upon its complexity and value.
Generally speaking, no.
If you are an executor, a grant of probate will be issued.
If you’re an administrator and you have the will, the probate service will issue a grant of letters of administration with the will annexed.
If you’re an administrator and there is no will, you’ll be issued a grant of letters of administration.
Administering an estate involves dealing with all the assets and liabilities of the deceased and then distributing the balance of the estate to the beneficiaries entitled under the will or intestacy rules.
If you are an executor or administrator of a will, you will be responsible for administering the estate of the deceased.
Administering an estate can be time-consuming and complex and, depending on the record-keeping of the deceased and the complexity of their estate may take a considerable amount of work. You may find that you need help.
Our wills and probate experts offer a compassionate and efficient service. We can help you with the administration or can carry out the whole process for you, and the cost will be met out of the estate involved.
When you administer an estate, you will need to do several things, such as:
Every estate is different and some are more complex than others. We offer a full range of services to help in the administration of estates, from simply obtaining a grant of probate to full administration of an estate.
Contact us for a no-obligation consultation where we will be happy to advise you on your particular circumstances.
Our fees are based on various factors, including the complexity of the matter, the level of assistance required to complete the work, the value of the estate and disbursements that have to be paid. Whilst it is difficult to give an accurate estimate of costs before we have detailed information about the estate to be administered, our experience shows that the following chart of costs will cover many situations.
Work type | Description | Cost |
Extraction of grant (IHT205) | Take instructions from executor, extract grant and hand to executor to deal with administration. Executor to gather and provide all relevant information for application. | £650 Plus VAT and disbursements. |
Extraction of grant (IHT205) | Take instructions but Metcalfe David Eyres Solicitors to gather all information relating to assets and liabilities. Grant extracted and passed to executor to deal with estate. | £800 – £1,000 dependent on complexity. Plus VAT and disbursements. |
Extraction of grant (IHT205) and completion of transfer of NRB (IHT217) | Executor to provide all information relevant for completion of IHT205 and IHT217 application.Metcalfe David Eyres Solicitors to obtain necessary information to complete NRB (IHT217). | £1,000 – £1,500 Plus VAT and disbursements. |
Grant and completion of IHT400 | Metcalfe David Eyres Solicitors to obtain all relevant information and complete form IHT400. Grant passed to executor for administration of estate. | From £2,000 to £3,000 dependent on complexity. Plus VAT and disbursements. |
Grant, transfer of NRB and completion of IHT400 | Non-taxable estate – simple will consisting of a limited number of assets. | From £1,500 Plus VAT and disbursements. |
Non-taxable estate – complex will with varied assets. | From £2,500 Plus VAT and disbursements. | |
Grant, transfer of NRB and completion of IHT400 | Taxable estate – simple will consisting of a limited number of assets. | From £2,500 Plus VAT and disbursements. |
Taxable estate – complex will with varied assets. | From £3,500 Plus VAT and disbursements. | |
Full estate administration | Estate value of up to £300,000 | £2,000 and 1% of the estate’s gross value and 0.5% of the property value. Plus VAT and disbursements. |
Estate value of £300,001 to £500,000 | £2,500 and 1% of the estate’s gross value and 0.5% of the property value. Plus VAT and disbursements. | |
Estate value of £500,001 to £1,000,000 | £3,000 and 1% of the estate’s gross value and 0.5% of the property value. Plus VAT and disbursements. | |
Estate value of £1,000,001 and above | £3,500 and 1% of the estate’s gross value and 0.5% of the property value. Plus VAT and disbursements. | |
Payment of residue of estate to charities, dealing with all aspects of administration and distribution. | From £3,000 dependent on complexity. Plus VAT and disbursements. Plus 1% uplift for complex assets. | |
Administration only | For collection in of assets where a grant is not required. Payment of liabilities and distribution. | From £1,000 dependent on amount of administration to be done – fixed fee (based on an hourly rate). |
There is no inclusion within the costs above for any conveyancing related to, and required as a result of, the administration of the estate. These costs will be quoted for separately.
We reserve the right to vary the above costs where unforeseen circumstances or issues that protract the completion of the matter are encountered. We will advise you as quickly as possible when we become aware of any such events.
Disbursements are payments relating to the administration of an estate that are made to third parties. They include:
In some cases tax will be payable which is in addition to our fees and disbursements we will discuss liability to pay tax with you once we have all the information needed to administer the estate.
Looking for a solicitor to assist you? Contact us today