Barnsley Solicitors Mills Kemp Brown Advice on Wills & Probate

We at Mills Kemp Brown feel obliged to make the public aware of the pitfalls of using large institutions including Banks and others to obtain legal advice relating to Wills and Probate.

There is a misconception that solicitors' costs are excessive compared with these institutions

The Government has a desire to put the consumer first and has drafted legislation to allow non qualified persons to provide legal services. The Act allows Banks and other to provide legal services for the public to allow the market to become more competitive and to allow the consumer more choice. One has to query the wisdom of trusting Banks to dabble in a family's future bearing in mind the complete mess that they have made of the countries finances in recent years.

It has been brought to our notice that members of the public have been advised by the institutions that solicitors costs are excessive and that the institutions will deal with matters in a more reasonable way and at less cost. Experience shows that that is not the case and that most institutions would charge between 3 and 5% of the value of the estate for administering the monies and property held in the estate.

Experience also tells us that the quality of draftsmanship involved in the Will making by the institutions leaves a lot to be desired.

Solicitors are regulated to make sure that they are completely open and honest about the cost of the work undertaken and to ensure that high standards are maintained. Each member of our Wills and Probate team has served at least 6 years of training and continues to receive training on an ongoing basis but none of theses rules and requirements apply to the institutions.

We are concerned by the number of people who have come to see us with complaints regarding Banks who have pressurised their relatives into making Wills and whose estates have then been left with extortionate charges to cover and for example administrating a modest estate valued at £120,000.00 and where the dealings have been straight forward. The institution seems to be charging between £3,600.00 and £6,000.00 plus VAT and out of pocket expenses. Even the largest firm of solicitors would charge less than half of that amount where matters are straightforward and there are no complications.

The institutions are advising potential customers that the fees that are charged would be less than those charged by a solicitor. It is often very difficult to pin the representatives of those institutions down to a fee and they are far from open and honest about the likely cost of dealing with an estate. The notion that the public are getting a cheap and more effective deal from the institution is clearly complete nonsense.

In summary if you choose a solicitor to deal with your Will and the tax implications of making a Will then you will have a relationship with the person that you are dealing with, on a face to face basis and you will be advised exactly of the cost involved. You can be reassured that you can choose the persons that you want to prove the estate and you will not be pressurised into using the solicitor or any other form of trust or trust company to administer the estate and you can nominate your own executor. You will not be pressurised in any way to use any particular body or person as your executors.

Our Wills and Probate team at Mills Kemp & Brown will be pleased to discuss any aspect of Will writing and of estate management with you and for further assistance you should contact our private client team whose details you can obtain from our website www.millskemp&brown.co.uk