Rights as a beneficiary where Solicitors are Executors

[Guest]

A simple estate. Deceased appointed solicitors as Executors of her will. We feel powerless at the exhorbitant fees we are being charged £15,000 for a flat and some savings. We asked them to relinquish executorship. They said if we wanted that we should have requested before they started any work. We were unaware that we could do this. They have not released funds claiming process held up by long delays HMRC. We checked HMRC average turn around 4 weeksto issue certificate. We are told a further 5 or so hours of work needs to be done which at £250.00 per hour + vat will net them a tidy sum. Are we as beneficiaries really powerless to stop this?

[des8]

As they have intermeddled in the estate they cannot now renounce their executorship.

Is there a charging clause in the will, or are they charging under section 29 of the Trustee Act 2000 .
Under the Act they are entitled to reasonable costs.
If you feel it is unreasonable you can challenge in the courts
Section 71 of the Solicitors Act 1974 means beneficiaries can seek assessment of a solicitor’s costs charged to the estate,
The residuary beneficiary can challenge as a person interested in the property out of which the executor has paid the costs.

But first complain to them and ask them to justify their charges