The benefits are widely unknown, and it’s not until the worst happens that people have to live with the pain of not having this essential legal protection in place.

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A Lasting Power of Attorney is essentially suitable for most people:

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• Single

• Married

• Living together

• Have children

• Home owner

• Over 18 years of age

• Have regular financial commitments such as standing orders, direct debits

• Have a mortgage

• Employed

• Have released equity from your home

• Business owner/self employed

• On benefits

• Drawing directly from your pension fund

• Have other debts such as credit cards

• Have savings and investments

• Have other assets

• Have pets

• Want to pass on your wealth

• Experience health issues or family history of health issues

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Why make a lasting power of attorney?

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​A LPA is a little like an insurance policy with reliable and guaranteed benefits. It may never be needed but if it does it is there to protect you, and your nearest and dearest. Without it the people around you will need to deal directly with the Courts, which is time consuming, expensive and stressful.

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• A lasting power of attorney is not reserved for the old and infirm

• Young people are not immune to illness and accidents

• 458,461 people in England are living with a dementia diagnosis (Source: NHS Digital; Quality Outcomes Framework (QOF) Recorded Dementia Diagnoses Nov 2017)

• Brain injuries or mental health problems also render others incapable of making their own decisions, so it is important to put arrangements in place early, so if that day comes, someone we trust and who loves us can make those important decisions on our behalf.

• We do not know what our future holds for us

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Examples of people who may lack capacity include those with:

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• unconsciousness caused by an anesthetic or sudden accident

• Brain injury

• Dementia/Alzheimer’s

• Stroke

• Mental health illness

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What if there is no LPA?

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• If you have an accident, or contract an illness that permanently incapacitates you or you become mentally incapacitated, without an LPA in place, the ONLY way your financial affairs can be managed is by an application (by a relative or someone close to you) to the Court of Protection for Deputyship.

• The application must provide personal information about themselves, their family, their own finances and the relationship with the person they wish to help care for. Medical evidence also needs to be obtained.

• This process costs a considerable amount of time and money by which time your finances could be seriously damaged. Even worse, a Judge will make the final decision as to who is appointed as the Deputy and this may not be who you would have wished to manage your affairs.

• The appointment of a Deputy may not even be a family member, and is often a Panel Deputy, such as a Solicitor or Barrister who work for the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) or a Local Authority.

• Your spouse and children have no legal rights to make decisions on your behalf.

• The potential costs of appointing a Deputy in the first year could be as much as £5,260, with potential on-going costs of £2,560 a year.

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Do you have joint Bank Accounts?

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​‘If one joint account holders loses mental capacity, banks and building societies can decide whether or not to temporarily restrict the use of the account to essential transactions only (e.g. living expenses and medical or residential care bills) until a Deputy has been appointed or a Power of Attorney registered.

 

’Quote from the British Bankers Association.

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Peace of Mind

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• A LPA is a legal document appointing someone to act on your behalf when you can no longer make decisions for yourself.

• You can appoint your spouse, partner, children, or anyone else you trust to take on this role, and provide legal protection for them to act on your behalf when the time comes.

• Selling/buying property

• Operating bank accounts

• Managing investments

• Gifting to family members and charities

• Paying bills

• Managing direct debits/standing orders/contracts

• Claiming benefits, allowances and pensions

• Payment of bills

• Giving consent to certain medical treatments including life sustaining treatment

• Daily events and activities such as dietary, dress, or regular routines

• Accommodation type, location decisions

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