New power of attorney guide

sheramber

Keep_pedalling wrote: »

Thanks for that I was not aware that change of addresses have to be reported back, although quite how that happens if you have already lost capacity I don't know. Apart from addresses you have to reoport the death of an attorney, you can also remove them, but you can't make any other changes such as changing the terms of the LPA or appointing new attorneys, that requires revocation and starting again.

If you have lost capacity your attorney will be acting and will notify the change in that capacity.

MSE_Kelvin

Hello there.

MSE Kelvin with a request here.

Have you had to try and take charge of another person’s finances when they’ve lost the capacity to make decisions themselves?

Did you have to do it via the Court of Protection because there was no Lasting Power of Attorney in place?

If so, we'd like to hear about your experience of this for our Power of Attorney guide, if you're willing to share it. All I'm looking for is a couple of sentences on how long it took, how much it cost and your feelings about the process.

Thanks for your time and help,

MSE Kelvin

drjonabmw

I feel slightly miffed by MSE for advertising "Half Price LPA" in the latest (6.12.17) MSE's Money Tips.
The real cost is £82 in England to do it online. This is unavoidable. The half-price option is the £82 registration fee PLUS half the usual cost of using the Which service. It is only half-price if you were originally going to use Which.
As Martin usually implies, a bargain is only a bargain if you were already going to buy it.
My wife and I both used The Office of The Public Guardian website to create both our financial and health LPAs last year and it is easy-peasy. There are plenty of "help" buttons.
Why spend money that you do not need to spend - surely that is what this website is about?

Swwisej

Am really interested in hearing about creating your own LPA , s , was it really that easy ?

badmemory

I found it very straightforward. The notes are good. To me what seemed most important was to make sure that you really really trust your attorney (not your broke brother in law who borrows money & never pays it back!) & try not to be too restrictive in what you will & will not allow them to do. This is to avoid the law of unintended consequences, such as stating that you want your GP to keep them informed, which could mean a hospital might not.

Rosie1980

It's very easy to do, have a go online, it doesn't cost anything until you register the LPA. There is lots of help both on the online form and on this forum. And if it proves all too much you can at least go to a solicitor a bit more prepared for what you do and don't want.

mblm07

I have read lots of issues with banks/financial institutions being very difficult to deal with after the EPOA has been invoked.

Is there a really good reason i would do this when i already have full online control of my mums financial affairs/accounts and can just get added over the phone as an authorised contact should somebody not want to deal with me.

We arranged these many years ago and wondering what actual value they offer now, if as in my case i already have the control over these areas.

Primrose

It’s all very well you having full control of your mum,s affairs now -presumably she has full mental capacity but just needs practical support. It will be a different situation entirely if she loses mental capacity, has a stroke or gets into circumstances where Social services have to get involved. Once your mum loses mental capacity it’s too late and you will have to go via the Office of Public Guardian route which is long, complicated, and you will find yourself having to keep scrupulous records of every single act you deal with.

I would not be too confident of the “I can just get added over the phone as an authorised contact” supposition. The bank may at some point start tightening up procedures and you will suddenly find you are completely cut off from handling your mum’s affairs without a P of A.

Don’t forget, if you have the old Enduring power of attorney documentation (as in the more updated version),it’s not enough to just have had the documentation prepared. If your mither loses mental capacity, you will actually have to go and have it registered with the office of Public Guardian.

Rosie1980

Should you Mum need care down the line or her house selling and she has lost mental capacity you will need the piece of paper that says you can act on her behalf.

Siriki

I think it's vital that any guide specifically addresses the limitations on what the attorney can do with the donor's money and that this is spelled out clearly so that it cannot be either mistakenly or deliberately misinterpreted