Despite HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) claiming the delays to probate applications have significantly improved and will be at an end by Christmas, many probate providers are still struggling with the aftermath and consequences of prolonged delays.
New applications for grants of probate are now averaging four weeks with targets that this will halve by Christmas, according to HMCTS.
If HMCTS achieve this feat, it will mean probate services would have resumed to expected levels of ten working days.
Whilst these claims suggested a positive end to the decade for probate professionals, some law firms have been left dumbfounded and bewildered by the recent HMCTS update.
Historic applications returning months beyond delayed deadlines, delays which are double the amount claimed by HMCTS and ignored communication by HMCTS have been viewed as standard practice by many within the sector.
Simon Hancox, Chief Executive Officer of Kings Court Trust, has taken the time to offer his insights into the situation and the impact it is having on their clients.
“We were slightly surprised and disappointed to read Today’s Wills and Probate’s article on 29th November titled “HMCTS Meet Their Targets Over Grants Being Issued” as our experience with the probate registries has been distinctly different from what was described. We are sure that some people may have been fortunate to come positively out of the other side of what has been an excruciating experience for our customers and probate professionals, but unfortunately, we are not one of those.
“HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) has said that the delays will be over by the end of the year, however, our current position with the registry contradicts their claim. We currently still have over 95 applications with the probate registry dating back to February. This also flies in the face of some earlier statements from HMCTS that they have been working things in date order.
“We received a Grant in November that was signed and dated by the registry in February. We are not sure how the registry expected us to manage this with our customers who have lost sales on properties due to this delay and additionally this is making us look incompetent. We are now cross-checking online to see if a Grant has been issued on our estates just in case we have not been informed it has been issued.
“We have also tried a different approach and tested the new online application process for legal professionals. Unfortunately, our first online application has taken 9 weeks for the Grant to be returned. This is totally unacceptable as we’re regularly getting Grants returned within 2 weeks before the issues started around April.
“In our opinion the whole process of probate and estate administration takes too long as it is, so to have an additional 9 weeks added onto the process by HMCTS is far from satisfactory. This is in addition to the time added on by HMRC and DWP when they are also involved in estates, for example. All of which impacts on our customers.
“We have attempted to lessen the impact of the delays on those who have entrusted us to take care of their probate and estate administration. Disappointingly, we have regularly contacted Susan Acland-Hood, CEO of HMCTS to try and get her assistance or view on progress via email, LinkedIn and Twitter but we only received one very brief response, which took the party line of everything is improving.
“Additionally, we’ve very recently used the new probate feedback email address to ask for an update. After sending them a list of our outstanding cases, we were asked which registry was dealing with the cases, which unfortunately is easier said than done. We originally sent our Grant applications to a single registry, but in an attempt to move things forward that registry distributed these out to other registries giving us no clear picture of which registry is handling the cases. Despite all our efforts, we have continued to be in the dark about when we can expect Grants to be issued.
“Unfortunately, Executors, Administrators and estate administration providers have all been impacted by delays which could have been better managed. The roll-out of the new technology at the same time as centralising the registries, plus potentially introducing probate fee increases all combined to make the delays substantially worse.
“If HMCTS had made a clear statement that any increased fees would apply to the date of death rather than the date of the application of the Grant, there would have been less of a rush to submit applications before the increases were planned to be introduced. Therefore, the registries would not have been so inundated at a difficult time when they were trying to implement the new technology.
“It’s not rocket science! We regularly asked David Gauke (at the time Minister of Justice) and Susan Acland-Hood to make this statement, to help their teams as much as all probate practitioners, but were ignored at every request.
“We are concerned that increased fees may come up after the general election and Brexit, and if it does arise again, we would ask again that HMCTS considers their stance on this well in advance of any potential changes.”
Have other probate professionals continued to suffer from the delays? What impact has this had on the firm and your clients?
