The Co-operative legal services for Probate - any good?

BlondeHeadOn

My father died recently, and I used the Co-op for the funeral. Since then theie Legal Services section rang me and were very helpful, giving free advice on what to do immediately to cancel various things like pension payments etc. which I thought was very good. Their free advice is defintely worth having!

Now they are trying to sell me their probate service, which to be honest I am not sure about. Has anyone used them before for probate etc.? I am the sole executor, but it is a pretty simple will and estate (no IHT) so I am not sure whether to try doing it myself or not. If they are good value for money I might consider using them, but not if it is not a good service.

Anyone any experience of them?

Errata

If it's a straightforward estate you could probably do probate yourself. The Probate Office is extremely helpful and doesn't charge anything no matter how many questions and queries you have.

Pee

What are they going to charge you? I would ask them for this in black and white and then ask a few local solicitors. You should get a feel for the service you will get in the replies to these questions.

You can do it yourself. The interview takes a couple of hours and I understand the Grant is currently taking 18 weeks to come back, but speak to a Probate Registry and find out for yourself.

Oldernotwiser

For a simple estate, getting probate is pretty easy and well within most people's capabilities.

BlondeHeadOn

Thanks for the replies. I think I will have a go at doing it myself, and just revert to the professional route if I get really stuck.

Errata

Good luck, it's easier than most people think. Here's the link for the Probate Office guidance notes on doing it yourself http://www.hmcourts-service.gov.uk/cms/1173.htm

Pee

I would still check out the costs and the likely timescales of all the options, so that you make an informed choice.

localhero

pee wrote:

The interview takes a couple of hours and I understand the Grant is currently taking 18 weeks to come back,

Not sure which Probate Registry you have used, but the interview usually lasts a few minutes and the Grant of Probate generally follows within 6 weeks.

Good luck OP, Errata is right - it is very straightforward to do it yourself and the Probate Registries welcome applications from the layperson.

pboae

Not probate, but we used them to write our very complicated wills. It was a fixed price, and they stuck to it, even though it was a lot of work. If I had to use a probate service, I would certainly consider them, but I'd rather not use one at all if I could avoid it.

Pee

It's worth comparing as the fee for a solicitor's application is £40 Probate Court fee and it takes seven working days for the Probate registry to issue.

floss2

Pee wrote: »

It's worth comparing as the fee for a solicitor's application is £40 Probate Court fee and it takes seven working days for the Probate registry to issue.

But that is without any time spent preparing for the application........what's the average hourly fee for a solicitor nowadays?

When we sorted my mother's estate, I think it probably took my brother about 15-20 hours of work in total to get to that stage (again, very simple, no IHT).