The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has faced mounting pressure over the last 12 months as probate delays reached record levels, causing significant financial hardship for bereaved families.
Official figures have revealed that the average application time increased drastically from two to 12 weeks, while a Direct Line Life Insurance study suggested that a third of all probate cases in the last year have faced delays in closing an estate.
So, why are the delays happening?
Proposals to increase probate fees… that didn’t go through anyway
In November 2018, the Government announced that it would reform probate fees. The significant changes would have seen some bereaved families pay almost £6,000 more compared to the fees at the time. This led to a surge in probate applications to beat the hike.
The proposals were later scrapped, but the damage had already been done and the backlog was building.
Closure of District Registries in favour of an online portal
Earlier this year, probate district registries across the country closed as part of Government plans to modernise HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS).
While a brand new digital probate service promised to cut delays and improve the application process for bereaved families, teething errors and the Covid-19 pandemic meant that the platform did more harm than help.
As a result, bereaved families were forced to wait weeks, and sometimes months, longer to close an estate.
Errors and missing beneficiaries
The Direct Line Life Insurance study also suggests that errors in filling out probate applications have led to delays. According to the research, one or more listed beneficiaries could not be located in 33 per cent of delayed cases, while there were difficulties proving the relationship with the beneficiary and the deceased in 29 per cent of cases. And in 16 per cent of cases, the executor of the will had passed away.
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