LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT
You may think that you do not need a Will, you may think that you are too young or not wealthy enough or you may just have given it no thought at all.
But by making a Will you can ensure that those you care about are provided for.
Without a Will, the law dictates those who will inherit your estate.Therefore, a partner, friend, carer or other relative may take nothing.
By making a Will you can make the decisions yourself, including choosing your Executors (the people you wish to administer your estate), making specific or cash gifts to individuals or charities, allocating the persons to whom the bulk of your estate is to be left, stipulating funeral arrangements and also making provision for guardians for minor children, amongst other things.
Making a Will gives you peace of mind and the knowledge that your loved ones will be provided for after your death.
If you already have a Will, it is important to update it if your circumstances change in any way.
We can offer a fixed fee for straight forward single or mirror Wills.
For more information, please contact Caroline Walters on 01636 640649 or alternatively email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
PROBATE AND ADMINISTRATION OF ESTATES
Your matter will be dealt with by our Caroline Walters, a chartered legal executive with over 20 years’ experience. Caroline qualified in 1999 as a member and become a fellow in 2001 and has specialised in the field of wills and probate since qualification. She has been working at Payne & Gamage throughout.
Caroline is assisted by Mrs Milda McDonald who has been at the firm for 4 years and has assisted in various different departments throughout.
Probate – Pricing Information
Our services will include the full administration of an Estate to include obtaining the Grant of Representation; collecting in the assets of the Estate; dealing with any IHT liability; producing estate accounts; and making final distribution.
Our fees will be calculated on a time spent basis at £180 plus Vat per hour.
There will also be an additional charge representing either 0.5% plus vat of the net value of the Estate if a non-professional Executor is appointed or 1% plus vat of the net value of the Estate if a professional Executor is appointed.
In addition to these fees you will also need to pay some disbursements. The likely disbursements are detailed below:
| Anti Money Laundering Search | £5.60 per name. |
| Bank Transfer Fee | £36.00 per transaction. |
| Probate Fee | £155.00 |
| Copy Grants | £1.50 per copy |
| Bankruptcy Searches | £2.00 per name. |
| Official copy register of entries | £6.00 |
Vat is chargeable at 20% of the fee payable for example a fee of £600 will attract an additional vat charge of £120 making a total payable of £720. We will always notify you when vat is applicable to any of our charges.
Steps to be taken in connection with the administration of an estate:-
- The taking of initial instructions and file opening procedures
- Establishing proof of death
- Establishing whether there is a Will and who are the Executors or, if there is no Will, who are the Administrators
- Money Laundering ID checks against the Executors/Administrators
- Taking receipt of the deceased’s paperwork and liaising with you for further information
- Contacting the various asset holders and arranging professional valuations of assets
- Registering death with any other relevant organisations
- Obtaining full details of assets and liabilities and obtaining your approval
- Preparing any necessary Inheritance Tax forms to ascertain any potential inheritance tax liability
- Preparing Legal Statement to apply for the Grant of Representation and arranging the signing of all paperwork
- Extracting Grant of Representation under seal
- Placing the statutory notices in the London Gazette and the local paper where applicable
- Dealing with the encashment of assets
- Liaising with the Conveyancing Department in respect of any property sale or transfer
- Arranging interim payments to beneficiaries if applicable
- Dealing with all final tax matters with a local firm of Accountants
- Liaising with HM Revenue & Customs thereafter if applicable
- Preparing final estate accounts for the Executors/Administrators approval
- Executing Bankruptcy Searches against beneficiaries
- Making final distribution to all beneficiaries and obtaining full receipts
- Taking steps to close the file
Other than Inheritance Tax we do not deal with other tax issues and it may be necessary to refer the file to our Accountants. Their fee will be payable from the Estate.
Please contact us to discuss your individual matter in more detail and we will at this stage tailor our quotation to fit your needs.
