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FAQ

I am here to serve you through this time. Many of these questions will help put your mind at rest.  Please do get in touch.

What is probate?
As a general term, probate describes the highly administrative legal and financial processes that follow when someone dies, leaving significant assets in their sole name. In England & Wales a court issued ‘Grant of Probate’ gives the legal representative/s, the executors, the legal authority to deal with the financial affairs of a person who has died, and responsibility for distributing their estate. Where there is no Will, the next of kin applies for ‘Letters of Administration’ and the estate is distributed in accordance with the laws of intestacy, but the probate process is essentially the same.
What is a significant asset?
In the eyes of the law, a significant asset will always mean solely-owned property (bricks and mortar), or a Tenants-in-Common share in property.

For financial institutions, with cash assets, a significant asset is more of a variable; for example, at the lower end, some will ask for a Grant of Probate on sums in excess of £10k, whereas at some High Street banks the threshold may be as high as £50k – for most it lies somewhere in between.

What is the gross estate value?
The gross estate value is the sum of all the assets – property, cash, money at bank, investments, bonds, possibly pension and death benefit monies along with the market value of any personal possessions such as motor vehicles, jewellery, watches or collections, and any assets held abroad. Be advised, it also includes the value of any gifts, or a proportion of, made above the prevailing allowance over the last 7 years, including monies written into trust.
What is the net estate value?
The net estate value is the gross estate minus liabilities, such as any debts owed by the estate including loans or mortgages, credit cards or overdrafts, household bills, invoices for goods or services such as care bills yet to be paid and funeral expenses. we take full responsibility for getting the grant of probate and dealing with the legal, tax, property and estate administration affairs.
What is the chargeable value of the estate?
The chargeable value of the estate is the net estate minus any allowances or reliefs available. For HMRC this is the amount on which Inheritance Tax, IHT, will be payable and they will want to see a full return of estate details. There are other circumstances under which they will want a full return too.

Where IHT is payable, then this will need to be done before the application for the Grant of probate can be made and within 6 full calendar months of the date of death.

How long does probate take?
It may take up to 3 months, or longer in complex estates, to gather all the estate asset and liability information. At this point, the estate value can be reported to HMRC and the formal application can be made. This may take a little longer where there is an Inheritance Tax liability, and full estate information needs to be provided. The Probate Registry quote an eight-week turnaround time for applications so a smooth process, with a straightforward estate, might expect to receive the Grant of Probate within 5 to 6 months. Collection of the assets, sales of property and the payment of any outstanding liabilities can begin now and, once this process is complete, the estate is ready to be distributed to the beneficiaries.
What are the laws of intestacy?
The laws of intestacy determine how your estate is distributed in the absence of a Will. These rules will allocate your estate to your family members in a strict order, depending on which relatives you leave behind.

Usually, your spouse or civil partner will inherit the bulk of your estate (though unmarried partners won’t inherit anything).

Where will your property go, if you don’t make a will?

How much does probate cost?

This is likely one of the first questions you will have, also likely the question most providers will not want to answer upfront which is exactly why we are making this one a priority to cover.

Assuming a service taking full responsibility for valuing the estate, getting the grant of probate and dealing with the legal, tax, property and estate administration affairs including the distribution to the beneficiaries.
In my experience your typical High Street Solicitor will be looking to charge at least 2%of the gross estate value although I have seen this rise up to 5%, even in simple estates.

Third party introducers such as banks and insurance companies typically charge between 3-5%, again, regardless of complexity.

Some providers will offer to charge a fixed fee, usually based on the estimated gross estate value. If the actual gross estate value comes in higher there will almost always be a clause in the contract which allows your provider to increase the fixed fee – in effect it is not fixed at all. Conversely, if the gross estate value comes in lower than the estimate you are highly unlikely to see a reduction in your fees.

Some providers will offer to charge an hourly rate for their time in addition to further fees for every letter, phone call, and email. Time spent answering any questions you may have will be charged at the same hourly rate – at the time of writing the usual hourly rate is upwards of £300 +VAT and there is no upper limit on how many hours it might all take.

At My Probate Ltd the straight answer is, ‘it depends….…’. Frustrating I know but bear with me. It depends because we look at the work involved in administering each individual estate, in effect we are underwriting on a case-by-case basis. This approach respects the integrity of each individual estate and means that the costs are a fair reflection of the complexity or otherwise, involved in administering the estate. This is what we call ‘the common-sense filter’ and it protects the beneficiaries in passing on the

Typically, our clients are paying somewhere between 1.25% and 1.75% of the gross estate value – this only really varies in exceptional circumstances. So, if your beloved Maiden Aunt dies leaving a modest estate but making gifts to 67 beneficiaries, the work involved is significant and you might expect to pay 1.75%. However, if this same modest estate is left to you alone, then more likely it would be 1.25%. You get the idea.

Do bear in mind that the percentages quoted here are also likely subject to VAT.

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