Leaving cash to executors?

[LouisaLovesMice]

I'm writing a will and would like to leave a cash sum to my executors, to make sure they aren't out of pocket. I know things like funeral costs can be claimed from the estate, so I'm more thinking to compensate them if they have to take annual leave or arrange childcare etc. I want to be a bit generous as obviously it might be arduous! How much do you think is reasonable?

Will is straightforward but would involve setting up a trust if my kids are still underage. I'm in Scotland if that makes a difference.

Thanks!

Who are the executors?

Unless they're professionals, in which case they would be paid, it's quite unusual for them not to be the main beneficiaries. It's a big ask as a "favour"

E.g. I was executor for DP and DCs are executors for me. I and DSis are executors for my parents.

I think it depends on who they are (ie what relationship?) and how much you have to leave.

If you're asking friends/relatives who are very busy with work/young kids/other responsibilities then I guess they may need to take annual leave to sort things out. There isn't normally a way to directly compensate for that though, as the loss won't really be financial; it will be lost annual leave time.

If you don't want to inconvenience anyone and are happy to leave money towards executor duties then why not appoint a solicitor to do it, with the estate meeting the costs?

Surely the executor is the person who'd be getting one of the bigger sums anyway?

Executors can reclaim expenses in England, eg postage costs or the cost of getting copies of the death certificate. It does take a lot of time and it's a really kind thought to leave them a legacy for the work that they'll do, regardless of the amount I'd appreciate the gesture.

They are close relatives. They aren't the main beneficiaries as we're leaving everything to our young children in trust.
I didn't realise it was so much work! My mum did it for a neighbour once and it didn't seem to be much, but maybe I just didn't notice!
Anyone any ideas roughly how much a solicitor would charge to be executor?

Executors can ask the other beneficiaries before they start probate if they can have an amount for their work and agree an amount. We found this out recently after a relative took over doing all the probate stuff and then at the end wanted a huge amount of money (more than a solicitor would have charged us).

It depends on what the estate can afford and how generous you want to be. Solicitors can charge a flat rate or a %. I would therefore see it being a range from £1000 each to £5000+.

The last person I know to be an executor reckoned it was the equivalent to about three weeks work, but inconveniently spread over a few months in bits and bobs.

Depending what you can afford and how much that would represent for the executor it might provide a reference point.

Depends on the complexity of the estate. It can be extremely complex and time-consuming. DH did it recently and it was months of work.

Being an executor is a load of work and stress. My DH did it for his uncle. The estate paid for the funeral costs and the like but he did actually leave DH a little more in his will as he knew how much was involved.

Thank you everyone, this is really helpful 😊

I've told my executors to ring around and hand it over to a solicitor!!

@LouisaLovesMice

They are close relatives. They aren't the main beneficiaries as we're leaving everything to our young children in trust. I didn't realise it was so much work! My mum did it for a neighbour once and it didn't seem to be much, but maybe I just didn't notice! Anyone any ideas roughly how much a solicitor would charge to be executor?

If you’ve got a good will with everything already set up, then you don’t need to waste money on a solicitor being the executor. I’ve been an executor for my sister, my dad and now my mum. It is quite a complex estate and so far I’ve completed probate application, dealt with all the financial institutions, utility companies etc. I’m having a free consultation with a solicitor next week and will decide from then if I need to pay a solicitor. I wouldn’t expect any extra payment for this. However, if I were doing it for a more distant relative or friend, some recognition might be nice.

Solicitors can charge tens of thousands of pounds even if it is a simple estate so it would be much cheaper to pay your executors if they are willing to do it.

Not if it's a simple estate they wouldn't charge that much. When we looked many solicitors offered probate packages which were around £6-7k

@longtompot

Not if it's a simple estate they wouldn't charge that much. When we looked many solicitors offered probate packages which were around £6-7k

The problem is that they do not give a fixed price. They will just milk the estate for as much as they can get away with and it is very difficult to dispute their costs.

I am Executor for an aunt.

She has trusted me with a substantial petty cash stash to use if I need it. Extra bills, printing / posting funeral invites and notice ( her friends are not really e mail or phone users), any expenses, or out of pocket costs.

She knows that I will spend it within the terms intended and share any leftover with the other beneficiaries (my siblings).

The amount would fall within the allowed gift level so not cause IHT issues.

You can keep the work for your Executors down by keeping your affairs very clear and tidy. Details of all accounts together and accessible etc. Details of all suppliers and utilities. Info about any valuable items.

The ones we spoke to did have a fixed price package, along with more open ended ones

Having solicitors as executors often results in a slow process - after all, the commissioning client is dead and can't complain!

Farming bits of the executors' work out to solicitors and charging that to the estate is usually fine, because the executors can find other solicitors if they're not happy, and the solicitors are aware of this.

Put some cash in an envelope for them, when my FIL left 1 K to his sister it cost an extra 1600 in legal fees for probate.

My mother has two life insurance policies, one each allocated to my sister and I, to help cover the costs of sorting out her affairs. She organised this when our father was dying, and it has been good to know that if anything happens to her the money is there for us to get back to Australia and deal with things. It should be a lot easier once she moves back to the UK as planned, but that has already taken years longer than we'd all hoped!

Many people's affairs will not be nearly as complex to finalise, but I like the idea of a small insurance policy with your executor as named beneficiary to help cover their more intangible costs of doing the job.

Thank you all so much for the advice - there's a lot of food for thought here and plenty we hadn't considered at all!