For a straightforward Will we charge £250 plus VAT (£300) and for Wills for a couple, which are similar, we charge £400 plus VAT (£480).

The typical stages in connection with the making of a Will are:-

• Taking initial instructions for the Will

• Drafting the Will

• Obtaining your approval of the Will

• Meeting you to sign the Will

Some staff have formal qualifications and some simply many years of experience.  Full details of the people involved in your case will be set out in our retainer documentation at the outset of the transaction, or alternatively, please see our Probate team page.  The work we will carry out for you includes all work necessary from the beginning to the end, i.e. from the initial instructions to completion of your Will.  The average timescale is 1-3 weeks, depending upon your requirements. 

Advice on Inheritance Tax is charged separately.  Complex Wills are charged on the time spent.  A will involving substantial or complex assets might cost £1,000 plus VAT (£1,200)

Current probate fees payable to the Government for a Grant of Probate are £300 with an extra £16 per sealed copy. The only other major cost payable to others is likely to be the cost of a valuation of property included in an estate. The cost of valuation varies but an average figure might be 0.1% plus VAT at 20% of the value of an ordinary residential property. A valuation of, for example, a large farm might cost several thousand pounds. A quote will be obtained from a valuer prior to instruction. If the property needs to be sold, then Estate Agent’s commission will be payable. This will depend upon the type of property and the type of agent involved, but fees are generally between 1% and 2% plus VAT at 20%.

There are other costs which may be incurred such as notices of the intention to distribute an estate in the London Gazette and the Cornish Guardian which costs approximately £250.00, as well as settling any debts that are due to third parties from the estate. These can be varied and it is not possible to list all of them but would include funeral expenses, payment of any outstanding utility bills etc.

We have a range of different staff, some with legal qualifications, some simply with many years of experience. Full details of the staff will be included in our retainer information.

Our fees include all services necessary to wind up an estate from beginning to end and no services, which might reasonably be expected to be included in the price, are excluded.

Charges for winding up the estate of a deceased person depend partly on the time that we spend and, partly, on the value of the assets involved. We will inform you of the hourly rates of the person involved at the outset and will be happy to discuss with you the likely number of hours that will be needed, once we have enough information to do so and based on our experience of previous cases. We also charge a value element of between 0% and 2% of the estate depending, in part, upon how complex it is. All fees are subject to VAT at 20%.

It is difficult to provide a timescale with regard to obtaining a Grant of Probate as it is dependent upon obtaining information about the deceased; assets from the Executors as well as third parties, such as banks, HMRC, pension companies etc. Once that information is obtained an application is submitted to the Probate Registry who are currently waking 16 weeks to issue a Grant of Probate. It will then be necessary to deal with the distribution of the estate. It can take anywhere between 6 to 12 months but could be longer if there are complications.

Typical stages in dealing with a probate matter with an estimate of cost based on the time that might be taken to deal with an estate like this: -

• Will with no complications

• Straightforward IHT calculation with a total value up to £500,000

• Up to five beneficiaries

• Co-operative counter parties

• Assets limited to up to five bank accounts and a house

‍ ‍£ Receiving initial instructions and considering terms of the Will 200.00 Gathering in all information about assets and liabilities of the estate 750.00 Drafting the application for Probate and any associated Inheritance Tax returns 500.00 Submitting application for Probate and arranging the payment of Inheritance Tax 200.00 Receiving and checking the Grant of Probate 100.00 Gathering in all assets within the estate 1,000.00 Settling liabilities 200.00 Paying out legacies under the Will 500.00 Preparing a set of accounts showing all funds received and paid out 200.00 Obtaining approval of the accounts from the Executors 100.00 Paying out funds to all remaining beneficiaries 500.00 Identity Checks – these range from £25 plus VAT to £50 plus Vat 50.00 SUBTOTAL 4,300.00 0.5% of estate, assuming a total value of £500,000 2,500.00 SUBTOTAL 6,800.00 VAT at 20% 1,360.00

TOTAL 8,160.00

If there is a property within the estate, then we will also need to deal with the transfer of the property to the relevant persons and this will attract additional fees and Land Registry fees.