Probate · Fixed fee agreed first, with VAT
Estate administration
Aaron handles the whole estate from start to finish, where it is cash and investments with a valid will. A fixed fee agreed in writing before the work starts, never a percentage of the estate.
From this figure, agreed as a fixed fee in writing before any work starts. Once agreed it does not change.
- Who it is for
- One person or a couple
- Typical timescale
- 6 to 9 months
- Who does the work
- Aaron Johnson, Consultant Solicitor and TEP, personally. No hand-offs.
What it costs
The fee, and the costs that are not the fee.
Third-party costs, called disbursements, are paid to the court, the Office of the Public Guardian, HM Land Registry or another body. They are passed on at cost and shown here so there is nothing to discover later.
See every fee on one page.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| FeeFrom this figure, agreed as a fixed fee in writing before any work starts. Once agreed it does not change. | from£3,000plus VAT at 20%(£3,600 inc. VAT) |
| Third-party costs, paid at cost | |
| Probate application feenone if the estate is £5,000 or less | £526 |
| Extra copies of the granteach, ordered with the application; £16 each afterwards | £2typical, can vary |
| Bankruptcy searchesPer beneficiary, before distribution: the £6 Land Registry fee plus VAT; £8.40 by post | £7.20 |
| Section 27 statutory noticesLondon Gazette and a local newspaper; protects executors from unknown creditors | £250typical, can vary |
Trust wills, probate, and trust and estate administration carry a small onboarding fee for the matter and an identity check for each person. Standard wills and powers of attorney do not. It is confirmed before any work starts. For this service it is £20 plus VAT at 20% (£24 inc. VAT) for the matter and £6.25 plus VAT at 20% (£7.50 inc. VAT) for each person.
From first call to finish.
- How long it takes
- 6 to 9 months
Aaron does each step himself. If a step takes longer than expected, that is his cost, not yours.
Free 15-minute call
Aaron learns about the estate, explains what needs to happen and gives you a fixed fee.
Valuing the estate
Aaron contacts the banks, insurers and other institutions to value the estate and identify all the assets and debts.
Applying for the grant
Aaron prepares and submits the probate application, reporting the excepted estate's figures in it, with the supporting documents.
Collecting in and paying debts
Aaron collects in the assets, pays the debts and any tax, and deals with anything that comes up.
Distributing the estate
Aaron distributes the estate in line with the will and gives everyone full accounts.
Included and not included
What the fee covers, and what it does not.
Published under the SRA Transparency Rules. Anything outside the fee is quoted separately before it is done.
- Included
- Valuations, the excepted estate's figures in the probate application, the grant, collecting in the assets, paying debts and tax, final accounts and distribution, for an estate of cash and investments with a valid will.
- Not included
- Conveyancing, valuers and clearance firms, deeds of variation and disputes.
- What the starting price assumes
- Up to 4 beneficiaries.
- Up to 6 bank, building society or NS&I accounts.
- Up to 3 shareholdings or investment holdings. A portfolio run by one manager counts as one.
- All the assets in the UK.
- A valid will.
- What raises the quote
- More beneficiaries, accounts or holdings than the starting price assumes, or shares to be sold rather than transferred.
- A property, or no will. The estate then moves to the property or no will tier.
- The full IHT400 account. The estate then moves to the IHT400 tier.
- Assets outside the UK.
- A business or a farm.
- A trust in the will, or a trust the estate creates.
- Lifetime gifts to trace and value.
- A beneficiary who is under 18, lives abroad or cannot be traced.
- An insolvent estate, where the debts are more than the assets.
- An HMRC enquiry.
- A dispute or a claim against the estate. A deed of variation is its own item, at its own fee.
Each is agreed with you in writing before the extra work starts, as a revised fixed fee. Never an hourly rate.
1. How the fee is set
Fees for full estate administration are fixed and modular. There are three starting fees, set by the work the estate needs. Aaron does not charge hourly rates or a percentage of the estate. He gives a fixed-fee quote in writing after assessing the estate's assets and complexity.
2. Base fee (cash and investments)
For a straightforward administration of an estate of cash and investments only (bank accounts, ISAs, National Savings, and the shareholdings or investment holdings the starting fee assumes) with a valid will, the starting fee for this service applies. Aaron publishes every fee, with VAT, on the fees page.
Example: a simple cash estate
A valid will, one executor, two beneficiaries, no property, cash in two or three bank accounts or ISAs, no inheritance tax to pay.
Legal fee: The starting fee for this service, plus VAT at 20 percent.
Disbursements: About £546 (the probate application fee, bankruptcy searches and copies of the grant).
3. What raises the fixed fee
The base fee covers the standard work for cash and investments, on the assumptions listed above. Where an estate has other assets or complications, a higher fixed fee is agreed with you at the outset.
Common examples:
- A property: managing it (insurance, valuation, utilities, clearance) until sale or transfer. With a property or no will, the estate administration with a property service applies, at its own higher starting fee.
- Tax: the full IHT400 account moves the estate to the estate administration with the full inheritance tax account service, at the highest starting fee. Business or agricultural relief claims, or the deceased's final self-assessment return, raise the fee too.
- Assets: more accounts or shareholdings than the starting fee assumes, shares to be sold rather than transferred, paper certificates, foreign assets, business interests or trust assets.
- People: more beneficiaries than the starting fee assumes, or a beneficiary who is under 18, lives abroad or cannot be traced.
- Legal: no will (intestacy), a lost original will, an insolvent estate, an HMRC enquiry or a DWP investigation.
- Disputes: any disagreement between executors or beneficiaries, or a claim against the estate.
The fee agreed covers what is known at the time. If something new comes to light later, a further fixed fee for that piece of work is agreed with you first.
4. What is included
Aaron, a solicitor, handling the matter himself. Obtaining date-of-death values for the assets and debts. Reporting the excepted estate's figures in the probate application, and the legal statement of truth. Submitting the application to the probate registry. Collecting in the assets to the firm's client account. Paying the funeral costs, bills and other debts. Preparing the final estate accounts and distributing to the beneficiaries after bankruptcy searches.
5. What is not included
Conveyancing fees for the sale or transfer of a property. Third-party valuers and house clearance companies. Deeds of variation. Disputes. Section 27 notices are a disbursement at cost.
What you can hold him to.
- Aaron handles your matter from start to finish
- The fee is fixed and confirmed before work starts
- You are told what is happening at every stage
- Home visits across Bridlington and East Yorkshire
- A free 15-minute call, with no obligation
In more detail
This is general information about the law of England and Wales, not legal advice. Each case is assessed on its own merits.
Aaron handles the whole estate
Full estate administration means Aaron deals with the whole of probate from start to finish, so you do not have to. It covers valuing the estate, reporting the excepted estate's figures in the probate application, the grant, collecting in the assets, paying debts and tax, the final accounts and distribution.
It is the right choice when there are several beneficiaries, or simply when you want a solicitor to be responsible for getting it right. Where there is a property to deal with or no will, the estate administration with a property service applies. Where there is inheritance tax to pay, or HMRC needs a full inheritance tax account, the estate administration with the full inheritance tax account service applies.
A simple estate of cash and investments takes about 6 to 9 months. Aaron gives you a realistic timescale at the start and tells you what is happening at each stage.
Who this is for
- Executors who want a solicitor to handle the whole process
- Estates with several accounts, investments or beneficiaries
- Families with a trust in the will (it raises the fee, agreed with you first)
- Executors who do not have the time, the confidence or the proximity to do it themselves
- Anyone who wants to know it has been done properly, because executors are personally liable for mistakes
How the fixed fee works
Aaron never charges by the hour or as a percentage of the estate. The fee is fixed and built up from the work the estate actually needs:
- A free 15-minute call. Aaron learns about the estate.
- A written fixed-fee quote based on the work involved.
- You approve the fee before any work begins.
If the work takes longer than expected, that is Aaron's responsibility, not yours.
What affects the fee
Every estate is different. Aaron will say which of the following apply to yours on the free call.
Included in every quote:
- Valuing cash and investments (bank accounts, ISAs, National Savings, and the shareholdings or investment holdings the starting fee assumes)
- Preparing and submitting the probate application
- Reporting the estate figures for an excepted estate (one that does not need a full inheritance tax account)
- Collecting in the assets and paying straightforward debts
- Preparing the estate accounts and distributing to the beneficiaries
What raises the fee:
- A property: managing the property (insurance, valuation, utilities, clearance) until it is sold or transferred. This is the estate administration with a property service, which has a higher starting fee.
- The number of institutions: each bank, building society, insurer and pension provider needs its own correspondence, valuation and collection
- The number of beneficiaries: more identity checks, bankruptcy searches, payments and more detailed accounts
- The number of debts: loans, credit cards and utility accounts each have to be identified, checked and settled before distribution
- Shareholdings: more than the starting fee assumes, shares to be sold rather than transferred, or paper share certificates, which have to be sold or transferred through each registrar
- The full IHT400 account: needed when the estate is not an excepted estate. This is the estate administration with the full inheritance tax account service, which has the highest starting fee.
- Inheritance tax to pay: Aaron calculates the tax, arranges payment and settles with HMRC. This is part of the estate administration with the full inheritance tax account service.
- A trust in the will: Aaron registers it with HMRC's Trust Registration Service
- The deceased's final tax return: filing the last self-assessment return with HMRC
- Foreign assets: assets outside England and Wales, needing overseas institutions or advisers
- Business interests: a company, partnership or sole trade needing valuation and administration
- No will (intestacy): extra steps to identify and verify who is entitled. This falls under the estate administration with a property or no will service.
- A missing will or missing beneficiaries: if the original will cannot be found or beneficiaries have to be traced
- A DWP investigation: for example, where the Department for Work and Pensions checks whether benefits were correctly claimed
Worked example: a simple estate
A valid will, one executor, two beneficiaries, cash in two or three bank accounts or ISAs, no property, no inheritance tax to pay.
Legal fee: The starting fee for this service, plus VAT at 20 percent. Aaron publishes every fee, with VAT, on the fees page.
Disbursements: About £546: the £526 probate application fee, bankruptcy searches at £7.20 for each of the two beneficiaries and three copies of the grant at £2 each.
Worked example: an estate with a property
A valid will, one executor, four beneficiaries, one house to sell, accounts with five institutions, an excepted estate, no inheritance tax to pay.
Legal fee: The starting fee for the estate administration with a property service. The higher fee reflects managing the sale, dealing with more institutions and paying more beneficiaries.
Worked example: a complex estate
More than one property, share portfolios including paper certificates, a full IHT400 account, inheritance tax to pay, a trust in the will and six or more beneficiaries.
Legal fee: From the starting fee for the estate administration with the full inheritance tax account service. The second property, the share portfolios, the trust and the extra beneficiaries each raise it, agreed as a further fixed amount before the work starts.
Aaron always gives you the fee in writing before you commit.
What Aaron does
- Values the estate: contacting banks, insurers, pension providers and HMRC
- Prepares and submits the probate application, reporting the excepted estate's figures in it
- Collects in the assets once the grant is issued
- Pays the debts, taxes and expenses
- Distributes the estate to the beneficiaries in line with the will
- Provides full estate accounts to the beneficiaries
What is not included
- Conveyancing: the legal work of selling or transferring a property is a separate instruction
- Third-party valuations: surveyors, business valuers and agricultural valuers charge their own fees
- House clearance: clearance companies charge their own fees
- Deeds of variation: if a beneficiary wants to redirect their inheritance, at its own fixed fee
- Section 27 notices: advertising for unknown creditors to protect the executors. Aaron recommends them. The cost is about £250, paid to the London Gazette and a local newspaper.
- Disputes between beneficiaries or executors, or claims against the estate
The estate may need none of these. Aaron will say what applies on the free call.
What happens if you do nothing
Executors are personally liable for administering the estate properly. Distributing before the debts are paid, missing a creditor, paying a bankrupt beneficiary directly or filing the wrong tax return can leave the executor paying out of their own pocket. Having a solicitor do it protects you.
Why Safe Harbour
- Aaron handles your matter from start to finish. It is never passed to a junior or a paralegal.
- Fixed fees, never hourly rates or a percentage of the estate
- Regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, with professional indemnity insurance.
- Home visits across Bridlington and East Yorkshire. Aaron comes to you.
- Plain English, and a pace that suits you
- You are told what is happening at every stage
You may also need
- Estate and tax planning: if the estate raises inheritance tax questions for the beneficiaries
- A will: beneficiaries and executors often want to update their own wills after an inheritance, especially if their estate is now over the allowances
- Grant only probate: if you would rather do the administration yourself and just need the grant
Related guides
Other probate fees.
About probate- Grant only probate
One person or a couple · Usually within 12 weeks of the application (HMCTS)
Reviewing the will and death certificate, the estate figures and any transferred nil-rate band reported in the probate application, the legal statement, the application, and the grant handed to you.
Plus Probate application fee £526. Extra copies of the grant about £2.
£950plus VAT at 20%(£1,140 inc. VAT) - Grant only, with the IHT400 account
One person or a couple · HMRC's code first, then usually within 12 weeks of the application (HMCTS)
The full IHT400 account and schedules, the reliefs and allowances claimed, tax calculated and the account submitted to HMRC, then the application and the grant.
Plus Probate application fee £526. Extra copies of the grant about £2.
£1,800plus VAT at 20%(£2,160 inc. VAT) - Estate administration, with a property or no will
One person or a couple · 9 to 14 months
Everything in estate administration, plus managing and selling or transferring the property or the share, or an intestacy.
Plus Probate application fee £526. Extra copies of the grant about £2. Bankruptcy searches £7.20. Section 27 statutory notices about £250. Land Registry official copies £7.
What the starting price assumes, and what raises it
- What the starting price assumes
- No more than one property in England and Wales, in the sole name or a share as tenants in common.
- Up to 4 beneficiaries.
- Up to 6 bank, building society or NS&I accounts.
- Up to 3 shareholdings or investment holdings. A portfolio run by one manager counts as one.
- All the assets in the UK.
- A valid will, or no will.
- An excepted estate, with no full IHT400 account.
- What raises the quote
- More beneficiaries, accounts or holdings than the starting price assumes, or shares to be sold rather than transferred.
- Each additional property.
- A property that has to be let, cleared or managed for a long time.
- The full IHT400 account. The estate then moves to the IHT400 tier.
- Assets outside the UK.
- A business or a farm.
- A trust in the will, or a trust the estate creates.
- Lifetime gifts to trace and value.
- A beneficiary who is under 18, lives abroad or cannot be traced.
- An insolvent estate, where the debts are more than the assets.
- An HMRC enquiry.
- A dispute or a claim against the estate. A deed of variation is its own item, at its own fee.
Each is agreed with you in writing before the extra work starts, as a revised fixed fee. Never an hourly rate.
from£5,000plus VAT at 20%(£6,000 inc. VAT)agreed as a fixed fee before any work starts - Estate administration, with the full IHT400 account
One person or a couple · 9 to 14 months
Everything in estate administration with a property where it applies, plus the full IHT400 account and schedules, the reliefs and allowances claimed, the tax calculated and paid from the estate (including instalments on a property), HMRC correspondence and clearance.
Plus Probate application fee £526. Extra copies of the grant about £2. Bankruptcy searches £7.20. Section 27 statutory notices about £250. Land Registry official copies £7.
What the starting price assumes, and what raises it
- What the starting price assumes
- The full IHT400 account, whether or not tax is due.
- No more than one property, in England and Wales.
- Up to 4 beneficiaries.
- Up to 6 bank, building society or NS&I accounts.
- Up to 3 shareholdings or investment holdings. A portfolio run by one manager counts as one.
- All the assets in the UK.
- A valid will.
- What raises the quote
- More beneficiaries, accounts or holdings than the starting price assumes, or shares to be sold rather than transferred.
- Each additional property.
- A property that has to be let, cleared or managed for a long time.
- No will.
- Assets outside the UK.
- A business or a farm.
- A trust in the will, or a trust the estate creates.
- Lifetime gifts to trace and value for the IHT400 account.
- A beneficiary who is under 18, lives abroad or cannot be traced.
- An insolvent estate, where the debts are more than the assets.
- An HMRC enquiry.
- A dispute or a claim against the estate. A deed of variation is its own item, at its own fee.
Each is agreed with you in writing before the extra work starts, as a revised fixed fee. Never an hourly rate.
from£8,000plus VAT at 20%(£9,600 inc. VAT)agreed as a fixed fee before any work starts
Next step
Ready when you are.
- Get your price
- Talk to AaronCall, or book a free 15-minute call.
- Send your detailsFill in the questionnaire online. Aaron reads it before you speak.
Sixty seconds of questions that end on your plan and a fixed fee, with VAT.
Or call 01262 310 850, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5.30pm.
Appointments are usually available within a few working days, including Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and home visits across East and North Yorkshire.