Wills & Probate

FSL Solicitors Ltd’s Wills and Probate Steps and Costs Information

At FSL Solicitors ltd we take death and inheritance seriously to ensure that after your death your estate is passed on to family and friends in accordance with the terms of your wish which is spelled out in your last Will.

Therefore, we advise all our clients to make a will as by making a Will you can decide what happens to your property and possessions after your death, in particular if there is a real estate or land which comprises part of your estate.

By way of explanation of the term your estate that means if you a commercial property, a house, flat, savings, shares, investments or personal possessions? These are your assets (i.e. your estate). A Will is a legal document that allows you to specify who should benefit from any of your assets (i.e. your estate).

If someone die without making a Will your estate will be distributed under the Rules of Intestacy incorporated in the Administration of Estates Act 1925. This can sometimes leave your children without any of your estate, but at other times they may be left with too much of your estate, forcing the sale of your family home to meet their inheritance. The law will dictate who can administer your estate and they may not be the people you trust most with your family’s inheritance. Therefore, it is imperative to have a Will drawn up by a professional Solicitors like FSL Solicitors ltd.

A well settled and drafted will sets out who is to benefit from your property and possessions (personal belongs such as previous items) and who is to receive your estate after your death.

Hence it is always the best practice to have a written will and as there are many good reasons to make a Will and if you do not, your assets will be distributed according to the law relating to intestacy rather than in accordance with your wishes.  This would be the case regardless of what you intended with your assets after your death.

The following are some good reasons to make a Will

  • You will be able to appoint trusted executors to deal with your estate.
  • You decide the way your body is dealt with (the burial of your body)
  • You decide how your assets are shared and distributed between family and friends
  • You can always make sure that your partner, children, relatives are provided for after your death.
  • You can make sure you do not pay more Inheritance Tax then that is absolutely necessary.
  • You will appoint individuals to deal with your estate.
  • Your Will and testament will be held safe with a firm of solicitors.
  • Solicitors will follow various legal formalities you need to follow to ensure that your Will is valid.
  • You will be able to avoid conflict and legal battles between family. 
  • You will be able to do a charitable work out of your estate.

At FSL Solicitors ltd we can advise you about how Inheritance Tax affects you and your hires after your death and assist you to prepare a valid will that will work when you are no longer in this world.

Regrettably, it is difficult to fix the price of drafting a Will.  AS our fees for drafting a Will depend upon how complicated your affairs may be but after our initial discussion, we can offer a fixed fee so that you know your financial exposure at the outset prior to engaging our firm in preparing your final Will.  This initial meeting is free of charge.

It is very crucial to think about what you want included in your Will.

The following are some examples: –

  • Who should be the executors of the Will.
  • Who you want to benefit from your Will.
  • Whether to set up a trust for minors.
  • Whether to sell any assets.
  • How to deal with the family home.
  • How much money and what property and possessions are you going to pass on under the will 
  • Who will look after any children under the age of 18?
  • You may consider providing a gift upon your death to a favourite charity after you have provided for family and friends.
  • Stop your wealth going into wrong hands through intestacy rules 

At FSL Solicitors ltd we are happy to keep your Will once your Will is drafted and executed, as it is very important to keep it in a safe place and to tell your executor or close relative where it is kept.

It is also very important to keep your Will up to date and reviewed after having major changes in your life.  Those major events are If there are any major changes to your Will it is advisable to make a new Will.  Minor changes can be made by a “codicil”, that is an addition or amendment to the existing Will.

At FSL Solicitors Ltd we deal with the winding up of the affairs of the deceased in accordance with the terms of the will or where there is no will under the Rules of Intestacy.

Our role is to assist the executors to collect the assets, pay the debts, agree and pay taxes and distribute the balance in accordance with the will or the intestacy rules.

We deal with instances where someone is unreasonably excluded from a will or where there is a dispute over the distribution of assets. These contentious issues are dealt with by challenging or defending the validity of a will or making/ opposing a claim against the deceased’s estate in Civil Courts.

You are required to publish prices for probate work in relation to uncontested cases where all the assets are in the UK. This includes both testate and intestate and taxable and non-taxable estates however, we recognise that your charging models for these may well differ. You will need to explain anything that could affect the price quoted (e.g. indicating there is a separate cost for preparing tax returns if it is not included) clearly on your website.

You may wish to consider whether you charge different prices based on the value of the estate involved.

Steps and Costs Associated when Applying for the grant, collecting and distributing the assets of a deceased Person.

We charge a fixed fee as stated above (1.5%) of the total estate value.  However, in some circumstances we charge an hourly rate.

In a simple grant of probate of letter of Administration, we anticipate this will take between 8 and 10 hours work at £350 per hour plus VAT at 20%. Total costs estimated at -£2800 – £3500 (+VAT at 20%). This is simply an estimate for very a small estate only, where we cannot charge a per centage.

However, the exact cost will depend on the individual circumstances of the matter. For example, if there is one beneficiary and no property, costs will be at the lower end of the range. If there are multiple beneficiaries, a property and multiple bank accounts, costs will be at the higher end, and charged at 1.5 % of the total estate.

We will handle the full process for you. This quote is for estates where:

  • There is a valid will
  • There is no more than one property
  • There are no more than 1 bank or building society accounts
  • There are no other intangible assets
  • There are 1-2 beneficiaries
  • There are no disputes between beneficiaries on division of assets. If disputes arise this is likely to lead to an increase in costs
  • There is no inheritance tax payable and the executors do not need to submit a full account to HMRC
  • There are no claims made against the estate

Disbursements included in this fee (where applicable VAT is included at 20%):

  • Probate application fee of £385
  • £10 Swearing of the oath (per executor)
  • Bankruptcy-only Land Charges Department searches (£4 per beneficiary)
  • £200 (depending on the size) Post in The London Gazette – Protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors.
  • £200 (depending on the size ) Post in a Local Newspaper – This also helps to protect against unexpected claims.

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.

Potential additional costs

  • If there is no will or the estate consists of any share holdings (stocks and 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.
  • If any additional copies of the grant are required, they will cost £2.00 (1 per asset usually).
  • Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included.  That will be charged separately and agreed in advance at the time.  If we have to register your property

How long will this take?

On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with within 4-6 months. Typically, obtaining the grant of probate takes 10-12weeks. Collecting assets then follows, which can take between 6-8 weeks. Once this has been done, we can distribute the assets, which normally takes 3-6 weeks.

Fixed Fee for Grant of Probate for a small estate

We can help you through this difficult process by obtaining the Grant of Probate on your behalf. We will also undertake the collecting and distributing of assets.

How much does this service cost?

TOTAL: fixed fee of £2500.00(plus. VAT which is charged at 20%).

This includes: obtaining the grant, collecting assets and distributing them.

Breakdown of costs:

Legal fees £2500

VAT on legal fees £500

Disbursements (£1200.00 in total including VAT at 20% where applicable):

  • Probate court fee of £385. No VAT on Court Fees
  • £10 Swearing of the oath (per executor).
  • Bankruptcy-only Land Charges Department searches (£4 per beneficiary).
  • £200 Post in The London Gazette – Protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors.
  • £200 Post in a Local Newspaper – This also helps to protect against unexpected claims.

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.

As part of our fixed fees, we will:

  • Provide you with a dedicated and experienced probate solicitor to work on your matter
  • Identify the legally appointed executors or administrators and beneficiaries
  • Accurately identify the type of Probate application you will require
  • Obtain the relevant documents required to make the application
  • Complete the Probate Application and the relevant HMRC forms
  • Draft a legal oath for you to swear
  • Make the application to the Probate Court on your behalf
  • Obtain the Probate and securely send two copies to you
  • Collect and distribute all assets in the estate

On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with within 3-4 months. Typically, obtaining the grant of probate takes 12-16weeks. Collecting assets then follows, which can take between 6 -8 weeks. Once this has been done, we can distribute the assets, which normally takes 3-6 weeks.

All matters are dealt with efficiently and with sensitivity and understanding and always handled by a partner of the firm and supervised by another partner to maintain high quality of the your work.