HM Courts and Tribunals (HMCTS) has published an apology for the slowness of the probate service since March 2019.
The statement also explains the reasoning behind the delays and the measures HMCTS are taking to improve the service it provides.
According to a statement released by HMCTS National Services Director Jonathan Wood:
“A huge surge in demand was mainly to blame, with applications during March and April 2019 more than a 50% increase above the usual monthly volumes. By the end of May, there were 45,000 more applications in the system than normal for the time of year.”
The statement also went on to say:
“The surge coincided with ‘teething problems’ in migrating a new IT system, which lost a number of days’ worth of working time. Since then the Probate Service has increased staffing by 20% to reduce the backlog, and is issuing 1,000 grants per day.”
However, there has been a large discussion amongst the sector with regards to the delays that are being faced. HMCTs estimate that most applications are being dealt with, in around six to eight weeks, whilst other sources say the delays are longer than that, typically around the ten to twelve week mark.
Ian Bond, TEP, Chairman of the Law Society’s Wills and Equity Committee said that HMCTS were:
“under-reporting probate delays, and the ‘disingenuous’ figures being cited did not reflect actual waiting times.”
HMCTS have said that the delays are as a result of the amount of ‘stops’ they have to implement as part of the process. As further information is required from an applicant. These ‘stops’ aren’t counted in the delay, as these applications are technically shelved until the information is sent through.
Practitioners have responded angrily to the implication that the excessive delays are due to applicant error, with many citing examples of applications with no errors taking more than 12 weeks.
I. Stephanie Boyce, Deputy Vice President of the Law Society, said:
“It has always been the case that HMCTS needs further assurance fro some probate applications.
“Solicitors and lay applicants across the country are still reporting waiting longer than six to eight weeks for a grant of probate.”
What are your thoughts on the probate delays? Have you experienced delays of over 12 weeks?
