Probate application taking for ever

I was the executor for my late brother-in-law, last year. I did the probate online without a solicitor. It took months. I wasted many hours trying to telephone them. They have only one number for the whole country!!. Good luck, I hope things improve for you.

Look at the relevant thread on Money Saving Expert about Wills, funerals, probate etc. There are hundreds of posts from people who have waited ages.

I believe even if you have no complications the minimum wait it 16 weeks.

I waited nearly two years because someone placed a caveat on our application and that puts a stop to everything! Two years of hell, solicitors fees, stress and unable to grieve properly.

Thanks to those who have replied.
Sorry to hear that someone (perhaps challenging the will?) put a caveat on your application Primrose53
No-one will challenge this will as MIL was a hermit and had no living relations but HMCTS are doing the same really questioning who drafted the will, etc and how it was witnessed.
I know it will become a public document if probate is granted and then the nosey parkers might find it but all these questions.....really pointless IMHO.

Anyone can put a caveat on a Probate application and they do not even have to say WHY they are doing it. They can renew it every 6 months and it costs them just £3 a time!! You can apply to get it removed but if the caveator is determined to be awkward then it can be prolonged and very costly.

The system is crazy.

We did my late Mums on line.. Unbelievable it was graded within 15 mins of submission, paperwork arrived few days later.
Good luck I believe.

Primrose53 - if that happened to you you were very unlucky. What a crazy system. Hopefully very few people know people holding grudges against the deceased or their beneficiaries would be doing it.
Funnily enough MIL did fall out with a lot of people not related to her in the past but not sure how they'd find out that she died.

It sounds as though the Probate Registry has concerns about the validity of the will. Is it a badly written home made will? It is not usual for the questions you describe to be raised unless there appear to be problems with the will.
Also, it’s not for the Probate Registry to chase HMRC for inheritance tax information - that’s for the applicant to do. Had you used a solicitor he would have done the chasing.

GSM - it is true that it was a homemade Will and unfortunately DH made a couple of clerical errors but we have explained to HMCTS why the errors happened and the webchat adviser has told us they are content with the will's validity.
Our experience of solicitors is that they can be extremely dilatory and we want all MIL's assets to go to the beneficiaries. Many applicants who have used solicitors have also experienced ridiculous delays.
The witness questionnaire includes questions about the testator having read and understood the contents of the will. I think this was sent because she was in her mid-90,'s when she signed the will and people assume she must have had dementia by then.
The medical records may well be requested next but they will prove she had all her marbles right to the end.
We would have been happy to chase HMRC earlier but when they had written us a letter saying they had issued the forms to HMCTS we took them at their word. We had no trouble chasing HMRC as soon as we found out that they had failed to send the forms.
It is unfortunate that each individual step taken by HMCTS takes so long because they have had a backlog of applications and they are not staffed up to clear quickly.

You would have had this sorted out a long time ago if a solicitor had written the will and applied for probate. A solicitor would also have been able to confirm capacity without need to apply for medical records. These questions are not the norm. This application is clearly not being treated as a straightforward one but has been passed up the chain for closer scrutiny.

We had wills drawn up by a solicitor.

I was widowed and I started probate soon after the funeral, it was all completed within a few weeks. I had to go and swear an oath and that was that, probate was granted. I did not enjoy doing the form but it was straightforward.

Working out the value of everything he owned was the most difficult thing for me

Ramblingrose22 Has anyone else been through this absurd process and had to suffer a delay of nearly 18 months since applying?

No. We always use a qualified Solicitor for all legal matters.

I've no idea - but can you involve a Solicitor, now, to sort?

Seems GSM sorted this out for you, perhaps follow her advice?

My Mum had a homemade will, it was a mess and the money she wanted to go to her GCs went to their father instead, needless to say the Solicitor said that she should have had a ‘proper will’ but as I didn’t know about it until she died there was little I could do.
Always get a will made with a Solicitor.

Ramblingrose22

Primrose53 - if that happened to you you were very unlucky. What a crazy system. Hopefully very few people know people holding grudges against the deceased or their beneficiaries would be doing it.
Funnily enough MIL did fall out with a lot of people not related to her in the past but not sure how they'd find out that she died.

I know quite a few people who have been in this position. I know people who have spent £15,000+ in legal fees trying to sort it too.

It is usually done out of spite and jealousy. If I had the time and strength I would start a campaign to get this stopped actually. What can you buy in this world for £3 …. Just about a bar of chocolate ….. yet you can cause all this legal mess for that and not tell the Probate Office or the applicant why you are doing so.

Hello again GSM, You gave me some very good advice last year.

I was the executor of my brother-in-law's will. I succeeded in obtaining probate online without a solicitor, to save on costs.

It did take several months.I did have to ring the probate office. Just to check why it was taking so long.

There is only one number for the whole country, and they have very few staff.

45 mins on the telephone before they answer.

I was always polite to the person on the other end.

I did ask why they did not employ more staff as it must make it very stressful for them. ( all telephone calls are recorded, in the hope the powers to be would hear them.)

I was astounded by the woman's reply and I quote,

She said, "That wouldn't help because they don't know when people are going to die " !!

I repeated this to a solicitor I met recently and he said it is typical of the probate office.

Thanks again for your help. I know you have kind given useful advice to many Gransnetters.

Best wishes.

.

Thanks utterbliss, nice to hear from you.

It has taken me three months to gather the information needed to apply for Probate. I am just waiting for one more valuation, which my stepson is supposed to be sorting. He has done nothing about it yet. Very frustrating, since he is one of the beneficiaries. He has done nothing to help me at all. So I will be waiting forever if Probate takes a further 18 months after I have applied.

That’s frustrating Cabbie. Perhaps say to him that you know he’s busy and if he can’t manage to organise the valuation this week you’ll do so, because you need to make the application?

Anyone can put a caveat on a Probate application and they do not even have to say WHY they are doing it. They can renew it every 6 months and it costs them just £3 a time!! You can apply to get it removed but if the caveator is determined to be awkward then it can be prolonged and very costly

An interesting way to get revenge against someone you hate,

Mums probate is still not done we have had 3 different solicitors handling it, just the house and a few investments, 33months so far and still counting.
Do solicitors actually do any work in between holidays!.

Well I regularly worked 7 days a week, but I was a commercial lawyer. You need to find out what’s going on. You will have been advised of the firm’s complaints procedure when your instructions were accepted.

My husBand left a straightforward will, prepared by his solicitor. It took eight months. I was told when I phoned it coukd br fast tracked now as I’d waited over 16 weeks
It cleared within three weeks of my call

biglouis

*Anyone can put a caveat on a Probate application and they do not even have to say WHY they are doing it. They can renew it every 6 months and it costs them just £3 a time!! You can apply to get it removed but if the caveator is determined to be awkward then it can be prolonged and very costly*

An interesting way to get revenge against someone you hate,

Absolutely and some evil people are doing just that. The law needs changing.

Mind you, Probate was finally granted after they realised what was being said was a load of rubbish. I then drew up the accounts and deducted all legal fees from his share so he lost out in the end. An absolutely pointless exercise on his behalf.

A childless aunt left her estate to be divided between 11 nieces and nephews - dh was an executor. It was all fairly straightforward and didn’t take too long at all, but we still had letters/emails of complaints from the Canadian contingent - why was it taking so long?

One of them actually invited himself to stay and more or less banged the dining table, saying, ‘What’s going on with this money?’
He virtually implied that dh and BiL (the other executor) were up to no good! 🤬
The Canadian relatives are no longer very popular here.

Primrose53

biglouis

Anyone can put a caveat on a Probate application and they do not even have to say WHY they are doing it. They can renew it every 6 months and it costs them just £3 a time!! You can apply to get it removed but if the caveator is determined to be awkward then it can be prolonged and very costly

An interesting way to get revenge against someone you hate,

Absolutely and some evil people are doing just that. The law needs changing.

Mind you, Probate was finally granted after they realised what was being said was a load of rubbish. I then drew up the accounts and deducted all legal fees from his share so he lost out in the end. An absolutely pointless exercise on his behalf.

What about situations where what is said is NOT a load of rubbish. We are likely to be in this situation in the future. Our relative has been "persuaded" to amend his will in favour of others. We fully intend to put a caveat on Probate. We are not evil!