Probate and estate administration services
RDP Accountants now have the legal authority to offer probate services. Until recently only solicitors could do this.
As licensed practitioners for probate related work and specialists in all aspects of taxation and accounts preparation, RDP Probate and Estate Services are equipped to take care of your probate and estate administration work.
If you are named as an executor and need some help from a professional, we have a service for you.
Applying for Probate
Applying for the legal right to deal with someone’s property, money and possessions (their ‘estate’) when they die is called ‘applying for probate’.
If the person left a will, you’ll get a ‘grant of probate’.
If the person did not leave a will, you’ll get ‘letters of administration’.
You apply for both in the same way.
You may not need probate if the person who died:
- had jointly owned land, property, shares or money – these will automatically pass to the surviving owners
- only had savings or premium bonds
Contact each asset holder (for example a bank or mortgage company) to find out if you’ll need probate to get access to their assets. Every organisation has its own rules.
How a probate application works
There are a number of steps which will apply in all cases.
- Check if there’s a will. There’s a different process if there’s no will.
- Value the estateand report it to HMRC.
- Apply for probate.
- Pay any Inheritance Tax that’s due.
- Collect the estate’s assets, for example money from the sale of the person’s property.
- Pay off any debts, for example unpaid utilities bills.
- Keep a record (‘estate accounts’) of how any property, money or possessions will be split.
- Pass the estate (‘distribute the assets’) on to the people named in the will (‘beneficiaries’).
If you are named as an executor and need some help from a professional, we have a service for you.
OUR PROBATE PRACTITIONERS
SIMON LASKY
SENIOR PARTNER
Senior Partner Simon Lasky is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
Simon qualified as a probate practitioner in 2018 through ACCA. He shares the work with Derek, drawing on their experience as accountants in practice.
Simon is the partner of the Ipswich office of RDP Accountants.
DEREK PONSFORD
SENIOR PARTNER
Senior Partner Derek Ponsford is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
Derek qualified as a probate practitioner through the ACCA in 2018. Since then he has worked on a number of complex cases.
He is a founding partner of RDP Accountants working mostly with Colchester clients.
PRICING
We have considered carefully how to price this service and we will be offering this service with a combination of a fixed price and an hourly rate. The application for probate and completion of the inheritance tax return will be on a fixed price fee. If executors would like our help in the administration of the estate this will be provided on a hourly rate as the amount of work will vary enormously, depending on the individual estate.
We offer a free, no obligation consultation where we can explain the process and provide you with a quote
LET’S GET STARTED
We’re here to answer your questions and help you complete the forms. These matters can be complicated and our experts are on hand to help.