What is Probate Support and how you can offer this service

As an estate planner, the relationship you share with your clients doesn’t end with drafting their will.

Once you’ve helped them plan their estate and formalised their instructions, clients require ongoing professional support to ensure their will remains up to date and effective throughout their lifetime.

And of course, the ultimate test of your planning is when the will is called upon following a client’s death.

You may think a client’s passing marks the end of their client journey. In reality it’s a calling for you to step up your services.

Probate can be a long and complex legal process, but with the right training and guidance from CTT, you can play a vital role in providing essential support  to your clients’ executors. You’ll also open the door to securing further business.

What is Probate?

In England and Wales, Probate is the legal and financial process of dealing with a deceased client’s estate. It requires that the will is proven valid and confirms that the person(s) named as executor have the authority to administer the deceased’s estate.

Once the executor(s) have been identified, they must apply for a Grant of Probate. This legal document gives them authority to act on the will.

In most cases, Probate must be granted before the executor(s) can begin administering the estate. This includes the sale of any properties and distribution of funds and assets to beneficiaries.

For this reason, Probate can be the most important first legal step when a client dies.

The Probate Process

The Probate process can be split into five stages:

• Asset and Liability Identification: Determine the deceased’s assets and liabilities (debts) to assess the estate’s value. Simultaneously, identify the beneficiaries and gather their identification documents.
• Inheritance Tax and Grant of Representation: Submit the inheritance tax return, pay any applicable Inheritance Tax to HMRC, , and apply for the Grant of Probate, which authorises the administration of the estate.
• Asset Liquidation and Debt Settlement: Once the grant is issued, sell or transfer the deceased’s assets, settle debts, cover administration costs, and account for any remaining taxes.
• Estate Accounting: Prepare detailed estate accounts, showing all transactions, and submit them to the executors for approval.
• Distribution of Assets: If there are no disputes, distribute the remaining estate to the beneficiaries according to the will.

Probate is a lengthy and sometimes complicated process. It can take 9-12 months to complete Probate on estates where there are no complications; complex estates often take much longer.

On top of this, the current backlog of requests with the Probate Registry is seeing delays of up to 12 weeks for executors to receive a Grant of Probate.

Some of the complexities of the probate process and the difficulties clients face attempting probate with insufficient knowledge and experience. Probate is becoming an increasingly arduous task especially in light of upcoming government changes to certain inheritance tax allowances.

The pitfalls in administering an estate are plentiful and for lay executors, there is a considerable burden.

An executors role is a duty and not a privilege.

The benefits of providing Probate support

Although some executors choose to take care of Probate themselves, many seek the help and advice of a Probate specialist. This is advisable for several reasons.

Firstly, Probate can be a complex, drawn-out process at what is often an emotionally difficult time for those involved.

Secondly, whoever carries out Probate can be held personally liable for any mistakes that are made – and the very nature of the process makes this a costly and considerable likelihood.

It also gives the executor the added reassurance that nothing will be missed. Oversights during the Probate process can mean taxes are under or overpaid and beneficiaries miss out on claiming allowances they are otherwise entitled to.

A professional executor takes away all of the administrative burden involved in estate matters . From dealing with institutions, calculating and arranging payment of estate taxes to distributing the estate as per the Will – at such a difficult time for family members, a professional executor can take away the stress and uncertainty in dealing with all matters.

As the person who drew up your client’s will – and possibly the only surviving person with any insight into their wishes – you are ideally placed to point your client’s executor(s) in the right direction in relation to Probate. Countrywide’s dedicated Probate Team are on hand to assist and provide a quote on a case by case basis to administer the estate.

Providing such support services to your client’s executor(s) and loved ones is also an excellent way to share your insight and skills with them. It builds the foundations for a relationship of trust and demonstrates your expertise, encouraging them to become clients themselves and recommend you to friends and family, further growing your business.

How CTT helps you support executors

CTT’s advanced training course, Probate, The Estate Planner’s Guide to Estate Administration, gives you insight into how to initially guide your client’s executor(s) in relation to probate; the pitfalls to avoid, and how to maximise any allowances including those available on IHT.

In addition to advanced training for Probate services, CTT also encourages advisers to utilise our professional in-house support for us to undertake probate on behalf of your clients’ executors. By tapping into CTT’s expert knowledge and resources, you can still provide this vital service even if you are new to estate planning.

Our Probate Department are specialists in dealing with the administration of the estate and we work with advisors to ensure the clients get the continuity in service that they need.

For more information on CTT’s Probate support training and services, contact the Partnership Team.