any solicitor types on here?

[sadlonelygit]

i have a question about the cost of preparing an estate to submit for probate.
basic facts are a firm dealt with the m-i-l estate, sorted out all the jointly owned property etc and charged £6G.
now they are telling us they want £7-10+vat to sort out the f-i-l estate. now by my reckoning they already know about all the properties, so it's just the pensions/cash/savings/vehicles to sort out.
they refuse to pay for 'professional' services ie the surveyor for current property valuation and are holding £3G from the m-i-l estate and are refusing to release the funds to the executors.
is this normal practice or are we being royally shafted by sharks taking advantage at a vulnerable time?

[BBROWN1664]

Why use a solicitor. I thought it just took a call/letter to the bank for any mortgages and the land registry to make the changes there. As far as I know, you only need the death certificate to take a second name off the deeds/mortgage.

[mtread]

I've done 3 estates myself without any problems, and one of them even involved Inheritance Tax (now Capital Gains Tax). If it's just property plus savings it's not difficult with some good books and and ability to understand instructions and forms. You can always use a Solicitor just for the difficult bits. You are paying for a Solicitor's clerk to do the easy bits. It's money for old rope.

[sadlonelygit]

it's not quite that straightforward.
there are several properties, 1/2 a business, pensions, savings and vehicles.
even with a double dose of IHT allowance we're still looking at being reamed by HMRC, hence the original Q.

[Razgruff]

Have you had a look around the Legal Ombudsmans site ?


http://www.legalombudsman.org.uk/

[chaz]

got my late parents probate sorted for less than a grand but it was a lot of years ago worked out about 1% but I sorted a lot out myself, bequests etc. and I got an estimate before he did the work. even then he said it would be hundreds and not thousands.

Not all solicitors are crooks although mine was as he went to jail for 12 months?

[DILLIGAFF]

When my father died my brother and I were sole beneficiaries.


He had nominated his bank as executors but they wanted to charge £1100, which at the time seemed excessive so my brother and I tried a few local solicitors and agreed on one who said they would act "for a lot less than that" as it was a straightforward probate.


When we got the bill it was £6000 !!!!!!!!!!!


Long story short I contested it with the Solicitors Law Society and got about £3600 back.


Thieving bastards.