Estate Administration

Work excluded from this service

This service does not include any of the following:

• Selling property: the costs of the sale will be a separate instruction and will not be addressed by the private client department. A member of our property department can act in connection with the sale and can contact you once the sale has been agreed with details of the costs and expenses, which will be payable from the estate
• Registering any continuing trusts with HM Revenue and Customs Trust Registration Service. Further information and details of our costs for trust registration can be found: https://www.maitlandwalker.com/blog/the-trust-registration-service-what-you-need-to-know.php
• Varying the will or intestacy, or providing the personal representatives or beneficiaries with personal tax advice is a separate instruction to the private client department.

Range of costs

Please note that VAT is charged at the rate applicable at the time of your matter, currently 20%.  

Fees generally range from £3,000 plus VAT to in excess of £20,000 plus VAT depending on the complexity of a matter.

Under our full administration service our fees will be based on time costs charged at an hourly rate of between £120 and £350 plus VAT depending on the level of fee earner dealing with your matter (our guideline rates are £120 to £180 per hour for a trainee solicitor, £180 to £230 per hour for an associate/senior associate solicitor, £180 to £350 per hour for a partner – all hourly rates are quoted exclusive of VAT).

The exact cost will depend on the individual circumstances of the matter. For example, if there is one beneficiary and no property, costs are likely to be at the lower end of the range. If there are multiple beneficiaries, a property, multiple investments, a business or an interest in a business, or the estate is subject to inheritance tax, costs will be at the higher end. However, for the majority of estates that we administer, the position is somewhere between the two and our associated fees general range between £4,000 plus VAT and £9,000 plus VAT.

Before undertaking any work we will review the will and discuss the estate with the personal representatives in order to provide an accurate fee estimate based on the information made available to us. It may be necessary to amend this estimate during the administration of an estate if unforeseen complications arise. If this occurs we will contact the personal representatives as soon as we become aware to explain the complications and to agree a revised fee estimate.

We will also charge:

• a client verification fee of £20 plus VAT per client. This  covers the cost of an identification search against each client to comply with our anti-money laundering requirements.
• a beneficiary processing fee of £30 plus VAT per beneficiary. This covers the cost of an identification check, a bank statements check and up to 3 bank transfers per beneficiary.

Assumptions

The assumptions upon which these fee estimates are given are: (a) that the personal representatives assist in providing us with information that allows us to identify of all assets and liabilities of the estate; (b) the personal representatives assume responsibility for carrying out the majority of non-legal tasks such as property clearance, funeral arrangements, liaising with estate agents and transferring utilities; (c) there are no claims made against the estate and (c) the sale of any property or business owned by the deceased is a separate matter.

Disbursements

The disbursements that we are likely to incur on behalf of the personal representatives while administering an estate under our full estate administration service are as follows:

• HMCTS Probate grant of representation fee of £273 per application (plus £1.50 for each copy of the grant required)
• Placing statutory advertisements in the London Gazette and the deceased’s local newspaper to search for any unknown creditors of the estate. The associated costs vary depending on which newspaper is chosen to run the advert, but generally run to approximately £200 to £300 plus VAT. Once the advert has been placed it gives unknown creditors two months in which to make their claim against an estate. If they fail to do so during the required period the personal representatives are free to distribute without fear of incurring personal liability for a debt if a creditor subsequently emerges (although if a claim arises before the estate is fully distributed, the balance of funds available must be applied toward payment of the outstanding debt).
• If it is necessary for us to obtain up-to-date official copies for the title to any property comprised in the estate these can be obtained from HM Land Registry at a fee of £6 plus VAT per official copy.
• HM Land Registry bankruptcy searches should be carried out against the names of all of the beneficiaries of the estate to ensure that none of them are undischarged bankrupts. Personal representatives who fail to carry out these searches and who then make a distribution out of the estate to a bankrupt beneficiary may be making the distribution to the wrong person, and, if so, will not receive a good receipt. In such cases, if the bankrupt puts the assets beyond the reach of their trustee in bankruptcy, there is a real risk that the trustee in bankruptcy, on behalf of the bankrupt’s creditors, will claim compensation against the personal representatives. The fee for carrying out these searches is £2 plus VAT per name.
• Estatesearch’s Financial Profile Premium at a fee of £185 plus VAT. This is a comprehensive financial asset and liability search. Its service has been designed to assist personal representatives to ensure that they can attempt to trace assets, including those otherwise lost or forgotten over the course of the deceased’s lifetime. If you require further information please refer to Estatesearch’s website (https://www.estatesearch.co.uk/services/).
• HM Land Registry fees, which are calculated on the basis of the value of the property.

These are estimated costs and may vary slightly. Additional expenses may also be payable throughout the matter. These disbursements are not included in our fee estimate and are an additional expense.

Timescales

In most cases we can obtain a grant of representation within 4 to 8 months of being instructed. After that, the time taken to complete the administration will depend to a large extent on the time it takes to dispose of or transfer certain assets and to finalise the deceased’s and their estate’s tax positions. Where inheritance tax is payable, it can take up to 18 months before the administration of the estate is completed.  It may take longer if the matter is very complex, or we are required to negotiate with HM Revenue and Customs.