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Service Information and Prices
Probate and Administration of Estates
Introduction
As part of our professional rules, we aim to ensure that anyone wishing to use our services has the information they need to make an informed choice of legal services provider, including understanding what the costs may be.
Why instruct Kenneth M Barrow & Co Solicitors
From our offices located in Seaham, County Durham, Kenneth M Barrow & Co Solicitors offer a friendly and efficient service in helping you to plan for the future. Our approach to clients is one of friendliness and efficiency. Our services include advice about preparing a Will, creating a Lasting Power of Attorney, estate planning or the creation of Trusts. We are also able to assist with estate administration after a loved one has died. We understand that this is a very difficult time and our aim is to make the administration of an estate as easy for our clients as possible. We are regularly instructed by executors to administer and distribute estates or the firm itself is appointed as the executor.
Occasionally clients feel comfortable distributing the estate themselves and seek our assistance in obtaining the Grant of Probate only. We can also help in situations when someone dies without a Will or where a Will has not been located. The administration of an estate in these circumstances is often more complicated but it is our aim to make this as straightforward for you as possible.
Likewise, we are also highly experienced in dealing with Inheritance Act claims and in circumstances where the validity of a loved one’s Will is in dispute. We offer a committed service and strive to provide grounded and robust advice to ensure that you do not enter into any unnecessary proceedings.
To assist our clients, we have set out below an indication of the likely costs involved in Probate matters along with an indication of the timescales.
Estate Administration: Applying for the grant, collecting and distributing the assets
What the service includes
We will:
Anticipated charges and expenses
As we have stated earlier, it is difficult to be precise about the anticipated costs as the exact cost will depend on the individual circumstances of the matter. Therefore, we have set out below the estimated costs of a typical, straightforward transaction. For this example we have assumed:
Administration of estates work is normally charged on a time spent basis.
| Estimated time required | 16 | hours |
| Hourly rate | £230.00 | per hour (Partner-Solicitor) |
| Our fees | £4680.00 | excl. VAT |
| VAT at 20%: | £936.00 | |
| Total | £5616.00 | + disbursements (see below) |
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. Disbursements in addition to the above fees include:
| Description | Typical costs |
| Probate application fee | £176.00 |
| Office copies of the Grant of Probate | £1.50 per copy |
| Bankruptcy-only Land Charges Department searches | £2.00 per beneficiary |
| Section 27 Trustee Act notice fee (this protects the Trustees against creditors) | £300.00 – £400.00 |
| Land Registry fees depending on the value of the property and whether it has been registered before. Please note that higher-value unregistered property can cost up to £680 and properties over £1M even more | £30.00 – £400.00 |
| Land Registry search fees | £3.00 plus £0.60 VAT |
| Copy Death Certificate and any other Certificates required | £11.00 per Certificate |
Factors that would increase the costs of your matter
Potential additional costs
If there is no will or the estate consists of any share holdings (stocks and bonds) or assets with more than three different organisations, there are likely to be additional costs that could range significantly depending on the estate and how the assets are to be dealt with. Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included in the above costs.
Where the assets in an estate are likely to be of a high value or the estate is more complex then we may add a ‘value uplift’ based on no more than 1% of the liquid assets in the estate plus VAT and 0.5% of the value of the property in the estate plus VAT.
We can give you a more accurate quote once we have more information.
How long will this take?
It is difficult to estimate with any precision how long a Probate matter will take as it will be influenced by many factors, some of which are outside of our control. However, on average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with within 6-9 months.
Application for Grant of Probate only
What the service includes
We will:
Anticipated charges and expenses
We can help our clients through this difficult process by obtaining the Grant of Probate on their behalf. Our typical costs below assume that we are instructed to seek Grant of Probate only, that no full Inheritance Tax Return requires to be completed and submitted to HMRC, and all financial information is supplied by the Executor.
| Fixed fee: | £895.00 | excl. VAT |
| VAT at 20%: | £179.00 | |
| Total | £1074.00 | + disbursements (see below) |
Our typical costs for an application for Probate where a full Inheritance Tax Return is required to be submitted to HMRC is as set out below.
| Fixed fee: | £1000.00 – £1,500.00 | excl. VAT |
| VAT at 20%: | £200.00 – £300.00 | |
| Total | £1200.00 – £1,800.00 | + disbursements (as above) |
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. Disbursements in addition to the above fees include:
| Description | Typical costs |
| Probate application fee | £273.00 |
| Office copies of the Grant of Probate | £1.50 per copy |
Please note the above indicative figures are for obtaining a Grant of Probate only and do not include the administration of the estate.
How long will this take?
It is difficult to estimate with any precision how long such a matter will take but, on average, such applications are dealt with and finalised within 8-16 weeks.
Wills
Standard Single Will
| Fixed fee: | £130.00 | excl. VAT |
| VAT at 20%: | £26.00 | |
| Total | £156.00 |
Standard Mirror Will
| Fixed fee: | £200.00 | excl. VAT |
| VAT at 20%: | £40.00 | |
| Total | £240.00 |
Please note that Complex Wills will attract further charges and an estimate will be given at the outset.
Lasting Power of Attorney
Health & Welfare or Property and Affairs
| Fixed fee: | £250.00 | excl. VAT |
| VAT at 20%: | £50.00 | |
| Total | £300.00 |
Double (two people or both Health & Welfare and Property and Affairs)
| Fixed fee: | £400.00 | excl. VAT |
| VAT at 20%: | £80.00 | |
| Total | £480.00 |
Please note that there are additional fees payable to the Office of the Public Guardian for each Lasting Power of Attorney. The fee can be reduced in certain circumstances
FIXED FEES:
WILLS:
Standard Single Will: £130 + VAT
Standard Mirror Will: £200 + VAT
( Complex Wills will attract further charges and an estimate will be given at the outset )
LASTING POWER OF ATTORNEY:
Single – Health & Welfare or Property and Affairs – £250 + VAT*
Double (two people or both Health & Welfare and Property and Affairs) – £400 + VAT*
*There are additional fees payable to the Office of the Public Guardian for each Lasting Power of Attorney. The fee can be reduced in certain circumstances
PROBATE/ LETTERS OF ADMINISTRATION
The basic fee for an application is £895.00 + VAT+ the Probate Court fee.
