Do you know the consequences of your new Will? Or are you happy to pay 6 times more than usual for a stranger to deal with your personal affairs?
One of the tough decisions you’ll need to make when you come to prepare your Will is who to appoint as your Executor. An Executor is who you choose to carry out the terms of your Will. Whilst we recommend you appoint your partner, your children or your close family or friends, many people over the last few decades have turned to their Bank for support and appointed them as their Executor. People trust banks, especially those writing new Wills after just losing a loved one as they typically don’t know what to do or are emotional and vulnerable and therefore they put their trust in the bank.
Just a few weeks ago a high street Bank wanted to charge a family £11,500 for acting as an Executor and administering the deceased’s estate in what looked to be a perfectly straightforward matter. This is nearly five times the typical cost and nearly six times the cost of what we’d charge at just £1997.
Many banks want to charge you a percentage of the estate, as they did in this case, but a Bank charging 2.5% on estates up to £1,000,000 could actually charge as much as £25,000. Banks also charge a fee to step down as Executor. Please don’t get caught out.
Whilst a percentage may have seemed modest 20 or more years ago, the price of houses has increased significantly during this time and therefore so has the ‘modest’ percentage. People are being caught out by the unclear small print and fail to understand the consequences.
Here at Penguin Legal we ensure there’s no small print, nothing to catch you out or to make you feel uneasy. We’ll gladly talk through all of the options available to you and help you fully understand the implications of your decisions, with clear fixed prices.
We always encourage you to appoint a loved one, family or friends to act as your Executors. By doing this you are taking the worry away, you can rest safe in the knowledge that your affairs are going to be handled by somebody that you fully trust.
We don’t charge percentages for dealing with Probate. No percentages means no nasty surprises for your family later on. We charge a fixed fee of £1997 which is nearly 6 times than what Banks are currently charging. bAt Penguin Legal we’ve spoken with many families who’ve appointed their Bank as their Executor and we’ve been able to help them. We’ve drafted new Wills to remove the bank as Executor, whilst updating the Will at the same time. Our clients have the peace of mind that their families won’t be hit by any large fees, and they’ll have their personal affairs handled by people they love and trust.
If you have a Will that appoints your Bank as Executor then please get in visit us to see how we can help. We’ll discuss with you all of your wishes in detail, appoint your family as Executor and be here for them if they need help. Our clear fixed prices offer you regular support, and you won’t face any hidden charges or small print.