Gloucester
Goodridge Court, Goodridge Avenue,
Gloucester, GL2 5EN
01452 520 251
Plan your future
Probate
support
Compassionate, professional assistance during difficult times. We help executors and administrators navigate the probate process, value the estate, and handle complex tax affairs.
Gloucester Office Exclusive
Please note that our probate and estate administration services are handled exclusively by our specialist team at the Gloucester office. If you require probate support, please contact them directly.
ICAEW Chartered
Established 1921
Local Tax Experts
Navigating the Complexities
Dealing with the financial affairs of a loved one can be overwhelming, particularly when you're grieving. As licensed probate practitioners, we will work alongside you with clear advice, genuine care and expert support, taking care of the legal and financial complexities so you don't have to.
Our Probate Services
Our support is available at two levels, giving you the flexibility to choose the approach which best suits your circumstances and requirements:
Grant of Probate Only
- Prepare and complete all relevant inheritance tax forms
- Prepare the probate documents for you to review and sign
- Finalise the Legal Statement
- Submit the application to the Probate Registry for the grant
- Receive the Grant of Probate, which we will forward to you
Probate & Estate Administration
All services within our “Grant of Probate Only” are included as well as:
- Arrange any inheritance tax payments
- Collect all estate assets
- Distribute any legacies
- Distribute the remaining estate to beneficiaries
- Prepare estate accounts as required
We will agree the precise scope of our work with you before commencing the engagement. Certain matters may require advice or services from another appropriately qualified professional. For example, we do not undertake reserved legal activities for which we are not licensed, such as conveyancing or contentious probate work. Where appropriate, we will explain when separate legal advice should be obtained.
Complete Support
Lifting the Administrative Burden
Because we often already have a deep understanding of a client's financial affairs, we are uniquely positioned to handle probate matters efficiently and cost-effectively.
We provide a seamless service that integrates tax planning with estate administration, ensuring the maximum possible value is preserved for beneficiaries.
Regulatory Information
Our Regulatory Status
Kingscott Dix Limited is a firm of Chartered Accountants and Registered Auditors, regulated by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).
We are also licensed by the ICAEW to carry out the reserved legal activity of non-contentious probate work in England and Wales.
Our regulatory details can be verified using the ICAEW Legal Services Register.
ICAEW firm reference: C002478055
Our probate and estate administration services are provided in accordance with ICAEW's Legal Services Regulations.
Key stages
Although every estate is different, a typical probate and estate administration engagement involves the following stages:
The time taken for completing the probate work will vary, but typically it can take between 6 and 9 months (dependent on the Probate Office processing time) to obtain a grant of probate. Estate administration would typically take a further 3–6 months for simple estates, or up to 18 months for a more complex estate. We will be able to give you a better idea of how long it will take to administer the estate once we have more details and as the matter progresses.
Probate Fees
We believe that clients should understand the likely cost of our services before deciding to instruct us.
Our fees depend upon the amount and complexity of the work required and the level of assistance you would like us to provide and are based on the time spent and experience of the staff involved. All work will be undertaken by Mark Spashett or Gemma Varley, as our probate authorised individuals, or under their guidance. As a guide, hourly charge rates are between £120 and £250 per hour plus VAT.
Typical probate costs range between £1,500 and £12,000 plus VAT and disbursements.
We will provide a tailored fee estimate once we have sufficient information about the estate. If we can provide a fixed fee for work, we shall endeavour to do so. Where it is not possible to provide a reliable fee estimate, we will charge for work done on an hourly rate basis.
Factors which may increase our fees
If circumstances arise which are likely to result in our original fee estimate being exceeded, we will explain the additional work required and provide an updated indication of costs.
Additional work may be required where, for example:
- there are a large number of (foreign) assets or beneficiaries;
- the estate includes trusts and/or significant lifetime gifts;
- inheritance tax reliefs require detailed consideration;
- HMRC opens an enquiry or corrective accounts/additional submissions to HMRC are required;
- there are disputes between executors or beneficiaries; or
- circumstances arise which were not apparent when our original estimate was provided.
VAT and disbursements
Our professional fees are subject to VAT at the prevailing rate where applicable.
You may also need to pay costs to third parties, commonly known as disbursements. Depending upon the estate, these could include probate registry and statutory notice fees. We will explain anticipated material disbursements where these are known.
Complaints
We aim to provide a high-quality service and want you to be satisfied with the work that we carry out.
If you have any concerns about our service, please raise these with the person dealing with your matter in the first instance. If the matter cannot be resolved, or you would prefer to make a formal complaint, please contact Mark Spashett, Head of Legal Practice.
We will consider carefully any complaint you may make about our work as soon as we receive it and we will do all we can to resolve it. We will acknowledge your complaint within five business days of its receipt and endeavour to deal with it within eight weeks.
Legal Ombudsman
If your complaint relates to the service we have provided and we have been unable to resolve it to your satisfaction, you may be entitled to refer the matter to the Legal Ombudsman.
You can normally ask the Legal Ombudsman to consider your complaint once we have issued our final response or if we have not resolved your complaint within eight weeks.
Generally, a complaint must be referred to the Legal Ombudsman:
- within six months of our final written response to your complaint; and
- within one year of the act or omission being complained about, or within one year of when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.
The Legal Ombudsman may be able to extend these time limits in certain circumstances.
Legal Ombudsman
PO Box 6167
Slough
SL1 0EH
Telephone: 0300 555 0333
Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk
Website: www.legalombudsman.org.uk
Complaints to ICAEW
As an ICAEW-accredited legal services firm, complaints relating to our professional conduct may also be made to the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.
Further information about making a complaint to ICAEW is available on the ICAEW website: www.icaew.com/probate
Professional Indemnity Insurance and Compensation Arrangements
We maintain professional indemnity insurance in accordance with the requirements applicable to our firm.
Clients of ICAEW-accredited legal services firms may also have access to the ICAEW Legal Services Compensation Scheme in certain circumstances. Details can be found on ICAEW's website: icaew.com/regulation/probate-services
Further Information
We will be happy to have an initial discussion about the estate; explain the services we can provide and provide an indication of our likely fees.
If you would like to discuss how we can assist with probate or the administration of an estate, please contact our probate team.
ICAEW Accredited for Probate
Mark Spashett
Probate Authorised Individual & Head of Legal Practice
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Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about working with Kingscott Dix, from scope and pricing to timelines and compliance.
Let's solve your financial puzzle
Whether you're looking for a new accountant, planning ahead for the next generation, or simply want a second opinion, we'd be glad to hear from you. Initial meetings are always at our cost, not yours.