The Eric Whitehead Partnership

We are pleased to report two pieces of good news for a change!

In a recent update, we outlined the Government’s proposed massive hike in Probate Registry fees, due to come into effect in May despite almost universal opposition.

We are delighted to report that the Government has now scrapped the planned increase claiming that there is now not enough time for the legislation to go through Parliament before the General Election in June.  However, the Government has declined to say whether the proposed increases will be brought back if the Prime Minister is re-elected in June.  Hopefully they will not!

In addition, the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) has recently reduced its fee for registering Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs) and Enduring Powers of Attorney (EPAs).  Before 1^st April 2017, the fee for registering an LPA or EPA was £110.  That fee has now been reduced to £82 – a strange figure, but any reduction is to be welcomed.

The fee reduction has been made possible by the high number of LPAs and EPAs being processed by the OPG and also as a result of internal efficiencies which have driven down costs.