Probate Issue - Getting no answer from Probate Service

timg147

Hi All,

Just wondering if anyone on here has any experience or expertise to share with me.

As some of you are aware as of 17th Jan 2024 a probate code is issued upon processing of the IHT400. We do not have a code and I have requested assistance by email three times from the Probate service and also been in a phone queue for 30 Mins (they are only open 9 till 1), (additionally their webchat service is constantly unavailable.

The problem I have is my father passed away Oct 2022. By the time we got all the account balances and house valuations etc together it was late Feb 2023. Probate was applied for in March (or so we thought) and also the IHT400 submitted. In April 2023 the inheritance tax bill was paid. Fast forward to 2024 and it appears that the probate application hadnt been submitted in early 2023 as previously thought. As the IHT400 was processed a long time before the Resubmission of the probate application is appears we may have an issue as the probate code was not required at this point (hope this makes sense). 

Does anyone have any experience or suggestions as to what course of action I should take, or alternatively how I get the probate code given the above. This is now holding up the property sale as well.

I am considering sending a compaint email but dont want to rock the boat so to speak.

Marcon

timg147 said:

Hi All,

Just wondering if anyone on here has any experience or expertise to share with me.

As some of you are aware as of 17th Jan 2024 a probate code is issued upon processing of the IHT400. We do not have a code and I have requested assistance by email three times from the Probate service and also been in a phone queue for 30 Mins (they are only open 9 till 1), (additionally their webchat service is constantly unavailable.

The problem I have is my father passed away Oct 2022. By the time we got all the account balances and house valuations etc together it was late Feb 2023. Probate was applied for in March (or so we thought) and also the IHT400 submitted. In April 2023 the inheritance tax bill was paid. Fast forward to 2024 and it appears that the probate application hadnt been submitted in early 2023 as previously thought. As the IHT400 was processed a long time before the Resubmission of the probate application is appears we may have an issue as the probate code was not required at this point (hope this makes sense). 

Does anyone have any experience or suggestions as to what course of action I should take, or alternatively how I get the probate code given the above. This is now holding up the property sale as well.

I am considering sending a compaint email but dont want to rock the boat so to speak.

Not realising for a year that probate hadn't been applied for is distinctly odd. Who applied for it and was it ever acknowledged (sounds as if it wasn't, but just checking)? How did it come to light that the application hadn't been made? At what point in 2024 did you realise?

I don't think complaining is going to help you at this stage, if the errors/confusion were of your (or your representative's) making.

I fear the dreaded telephone queue is likely to be your best hope. 

poppystar

Isn’t the code issued by HMRC? Have you contacted them?

Has the Probate application now been made? (Not clear why you say “resubmission”? ) and have you hit a problem with it? Is anyone asking you for the code? Who is telling you that you have an issue? Who is/has applied for Probate? Are you doing it yourself or had you contracted someone to do it for you? 

timg147

Hi
My mother's probate was applied for shortly before when my dad's was. I'm not sure of the date my mother's was granted but it was well into the second half of 2023. Since the property and all joint accounts then passed to my father we expected a bit of a delay. It wasn't until feb/March this year that the problem was found out.  We have not had an admission from the legal people handling it that's they didn't actually submit it. From my reading of emails it sounds as though it was submitted in paper form and they have no proof of postage/delivery

It is the probate service that's asking for the code. I may ask the question of hmrc. The probate is being handled by a legal company. The request for the code came relatively quickly after the 'resubmission ' this year

I think I will investigate the hmrc route first and then resign myself to the dreaded phone queue.

RAS

I'd suggest you ask the legal company to resign if possible?