If you were to ask most executors what probate actually is, I suspect many would point to the grant arriving through the letterbox. I can fully understand why, as it feels like the point everything has been building towards.
I do wonder, though, whether we have become a little guilty of judging probate by that moment alone.
The latest HMCTS figures suggest there is plenty for families, executors and legal professionals to be positive about. Probate grants are now being issued in around five weeks on average. While that is unchanged from the same period last year, it remains considerably quicker than the longer waiting times seen in earlier years.
As a profession, we have spent the past few years quite rightly focusing on probate waiting times. But with processing times having improved from their previous highs, there is an opportunity to focus more attention on what happens after the grant is issued.
Probate is only one part of the job
When probate has been granted, there is often a sense of relief. After weeks of gathering paperwork and waiting for the application to be processed, it finally feels as though something tangible has happened.
For many executors, that is where one piece of paperwork is replaced by another. Assets still need to be gathered, debts settled, estate accounts prepared and, in many cases, a property sold before beneficiaries can receive what they are due. None of those responsibilities disappear simply because probate has been granted. For many estates, much of the administration still remains to be completed.
The waiting does not end with probate
The latest HMCTS figures help put that into perspective. While grants are now being issued much more quickly, there were still 42,490 open probate cases at the end of March 2026. Receiving probate and completing the administration of an estate are two very different things.
Anyone working in probate will recognise what comes next. One organisation is ready to release funds while another comes back asking for one more certified copy. The buyer who looked ready to exchange suddenly has a survey issue, while somebody else is still waiting for paperwork that seems to have disappeared into the system. Before long, a handful of perfectly ordinary delays have turned into another month.
That is simply the nature of probate. Even estates that appear straightforward at the outset can involve several organisations, different timescales and far more administration than most executors ever expect. Often, it is not one major obstacle that causes a delay, but a collection of smaller issues that gradually build on one another.
Expectations deserve just as much attention
One thing I have noticed is that people cope remarkably well with waiting when they know why they are waiting. Silence has a habit of filling itself with worry and, if families do not know why something is taking time, it is only natural for them to assume nothing is happening.
Most executors will only take on the role once or twice in their lifetime. They are learning as they go, often while dealing with bereavement at the same time. Explaining what still needs to happen, why certain stages take longer than others and where progress has already been made can remove much of that uncertainty and make the experience feel far less overwhelming.
For many firms, that is where the greatest value is added. It’s not simply about progressing the legal work; it’s about helping families understand why an estate cannot always move at the pace they expect and giving them confidence that progress is still being made.
After the grant
This is where better visibility can make a real difference, and the improvements made by HMCTS should absolutely be recognised. Faster probate grants allow executors to move forward sooner, and that benefits everyone involved.
However, the next challenge is making sure families are just as well prepared for everything that follows. Setting expectations from the outset helps families prepare for what lies ahead and reminds us that good probate work is about far more than obtaining the grant.
This article is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal or financial advice.
About the author
Becky Dixon is growth manager at Untangled. She originally joined the company in April 2026 when it was known as Ampla Finance, prior to its official corporate rebranding to Untangled in June 2026
This article was submitted by Ampla Finance as part of an advertising agreement with Today’s Wills and Probate. The views expressed in this article are those of the advertiser and not those of Today’s Wills and Probate.
