With the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s (SRA) consultation on the future of client accounts ongoing an FCA-regulated provider of third party managed accounts (TPMA) and escrow accounts has launched a dedicated probate service for executors and administrators.
The future of client accounts are in the balance following the consultation, which was launched in the wake a ‘sharp rise’ in the number of interventions the SRA has undertaken at firms. The consultation, which closes on 21st February 2025 will review the future of solicitors holding client money; the protections in place around that money; and the future of the Compensation Fund which has been hit by sizeable failures including Axiom Ince.
It’s why, says Peter Hillyard, Client Operations Manager at dospay, this is the right time to launch the Probate and Executor Bank Accounts escrow service in what is believed to be an industry first free of charge account to support the administration of probate and executor accounts.
The accounts are opened in the name of the deceased’s estate and held securely at the Bank of England while the executors carry out their duties. The benefits of escrow say dospay include speedier account opening, and superior protection allaying any concerns over bank solvency.
“The accounts are all available online 24/7 to the solicitor/administrator collecting the assets on behalf of the estate. In addition, we recognise that executors will often need (or at least wish) to be able to keep an eye on the account and its transactions, so we afford all executors read-only access as well. If the executors / administrators decide that this would be useful, we can also grant read-only access to the accounts for beneficiaries or other interested parties, but we will only do so on the executors’ direct authority.”
“We will pay solicitor/administrator fees against invoices properly rendered against a client care letter or quotation issued and approved by the executors. We will, subject to the usual compliance requirements, pay gifts to beneficiaries, including individuals and charities or causes”
said Hillyard.
The business has to date focused on high-value sector including aviation, marine, construction and real estate, and family wealth with the Probate and Executor Bank Account part of dospay’s entry into legal services which includes a TPMA for legal fees on account
“Given the risks associated with client account, compliance and regulatory rules, and simple human error which has led to sizeable cyber attacks in the legal sector, TPMAs offer an alternative solution for firms. As an FCA-regulated institution our state-of-the-art cybersecurity protocols, including encryption, multi-factor authentication, and fraud monitoring, alongside comprehensive transaction logs and regular statements, provide a transparent and verifiable record of all activity.”
As result, Hillyard concludes, the use of TPMA’s eliminate the need to contribute to the SRA Compensation Fund and also reduces SRA accounts reporting requirements for monies held within the account; so both saving time and admin.
One Response
Is the legal professional truly going to fall for this? Dospay, a company barely over a decade old, with a sole director. It’s shares held by another company only four years old, again a sole director (the same director as Dospay Ltd). But, the proposal is that we put all our probate clients’ money in an account administered by Dospay.
What happens if that money “disappears”? No SRA rules to follow, no multiple partners in a law firm all watching what is going on.
Just a small limited company folding and then reopening as something else?
The profession needs to wake up. Despite the Axion debacle, which the SRA should be accountable for anyway, the theft of client money in law firms by those who control the firm is a low occurrence.
No one seemed bothered about solicitors holding client money until interest rates started to increase and other “stakeholders” have seen an opportunity to make some money for themselves at the expense of the highly regulated and, quite frankly, only professionals involved in the matter in the first place.
I also see that they claim their account to be free of charge. How? All the compliance and regulation and granting online access to executors, lawyers, beneficiaries etc. With no charge? Or….will they just take a large share from the interest that will accrue if they can hold these large sums of money. Surely this is not being done for nothing. This is just one sector trying to make money fort itself by hijacking the traditional client accounts held by solicitors for many many decades.