Power of attorney help

cherrybomb

Ok, so I'm not sure where to go for help with this one, any advice is welcome but please be gentle!

So, my father is elderly and has been in and out of hospital for the past two years, he's back home now but is still very weak and we don't think he has a lot longer left. My aunt (Dad's sister) has taken a lot of cash from his home somewhere in the region of £20K and also has his bank/post office cards. Myself and my aunt have no real relationship and my dad seems to think she's an angel. I was told I needed to get power of attorney over my father if I wanted to get this cash back from my aunt. But there's no real record of it and I dont want her to get spooked and spend it all before my father can talk to her about it (getting him to talk about it is a struggle). This money will be needed to pay for his funeral when the time comes.

What should I do? Please bare in mind I don't care about getting this money for me, I want my dad to have his money back to enjoy in his last few months. :(:(

Browntoa

get him to ring up , or write in , and report the cards as lost so the banks issue new ones .


she cannot use them if replaced

Mojisola

cherrybomb wrote: »

My aunt (Dad's sister) has taken a lot of cash from his home somewhere in the region of £20K and also has his bank/post office cards.

I was told I needed to get power of attorney over my father if I wanted to get this cash back from my aunt.

But there's no real record of it

If aunt claims that she hasn't taken any money or that your father gave it to her, you don't stand much chance of getting it back - whether you have POA or not.

cherrybomb

Mojisola wrote: »

If aunt claims that she hasn't taken any money or that your father gave it to her, you don't stand much chance of getting it back - whether you have POA or not.

This is what I was thinking, so PoA would'nt be much use

Mojisola

cherrybomb wrote: »

This is what I was thinking, so PoA would'nt be much use

It could be for other reasons.

Browntoa

its useful to close , open , change bank accounts , get bank statements (see if moneys going and where) and generally managing your fathers estate and wellbeing without a load of grief

Savvy_Sue

If there's no real record of it, how do you think Dad's going to get any of it back? If Dad struggles to speak about it and believes his sister is an angel, how do you think he's going to get any of it back?

If you get Power of Attorney, she will have to be informed, so that will presumably spook her.

elderabuse.org.uk may be worth speaking to.

cherrybomb

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

If there's no real record of it, how do you think Dad's going to get any of it back? If Dad struggles to speak about it and believes his sister is an angel, how do you think he's going to get any of it back?

If you get Power of Attorney, she will have to be informed, so that will presumably spook her.

elderabuse.org.uk may be worth speaking to.

That's the issue, I just wanted to know if anyone knew of any way to help my father.

Thanks, I'll look at that website and see if they can help.

Detroit

You say your father is ill, but don't say whether he lacks mental capacity to manage his affairs?
POA in these circumstances would only be granted if the court of protection was satisfied your father couldn't understand his financial decisions.

This is not easy, as the assumption is that people can manage their affairs, unless evidence is provided to the contrary.

This means evidencing that his mental condition is such that he doesn't understand his finances anymore, and this is not the same as his making decisions with his money you think are unwise, such as indulging your aunt.

Provided he understands what he's doing your father can give his money to who he likes, and choose not to save a penny towards his funeral.

If you genuinely feel your father doesn't understand his money however, and is confused in other ways, POA could be an option. In this case, I agree with the advice to consult CAB.

It's not clear from your post if your father knows your aunt has this money. If he doesn't, and has mental capacity, the first step would be to tell him. He can then decide what action, if any, he wishes to take.

If however he lacks mental capacity, your aunt is exploiting him, and this would be a matter for the police

elsien

That's not entirely accurate - dad would have to have capacity to make a power of attorney and decide what powers he wanted to authorise.
It can be registered and used while he still has capacity if he still prefers to have some or all of his financial affairs managed by someone else.
The other alternative would be for him to agree a third party bank mandate, but this could only be used while he still had capacity.
If he lacks capacity then someone would need to apply to the court if protection to act as his deputy.

Detroit

elsien wrote: »

That's not entirely accurate - dad would have to have capacity to make a power of attorney and decide what powers he wanted to authorise.
It can be registered and used while he still has capacity if he still prefers to have some or all of his financial affairs managed by someone else.
The other alternative would be for him to agree a third party bank mandate, but this could only be used while he still had capacity.
If he lacks capacity then someone would need to apply to the court if protection to act as his deputy.

I was referring to the OPs particular circumstances whereby they want POA in order that they (the OP) can get the money back.
This read to me as though they wanted to apply so they could take this action without the father necessarily being in agreement, i.e. because the OP thinks it best.
However, you are of course correct they would apply to be a deputy if he lacks capacity. My mistake!:)