Deputy's charges post-death

We act in the administration of an estate where the person’s finances were managed by a professional deputy for a few years prior to his death.

When we received notification of the death we contacted the deputy’s law firm and asked them to provide information about the deceased’s circumstances and documentation to enable us to prepare the IHT400.

We recently asked them for the deputy’s final invoice up to the date of death and were presented with an invoice covering the post-death period which included time spent dealing with our enquries. We stated there was no basis for charging for work as a deputy post-death and they have suggested that we make them an offer for the work they have carried out. Just to clarify things - we essentially asked the standard questions we would ask a surviving spouse or next of kin when someone dies.

Is this standard practice for professional deputies to charge for dealing with post-death enquiries? Is there any legal basis for charging the estate for providing information?

Samir Hussain
Gregsons