Power of Attorney

incandescent

Hi,

I have a continuing power of attorney for my father, who has dementia and have been managing his regular finances for some time, with his consent.

His dementia has worsened significantly during this time though and that makes it more difficult to discuss more significant financial matters with him, such as transferring money or assets to my mother.

I understand the tax implications of transferring financial assets between spouses, but my question is can I execute those transfers as his attorney or do we need any additional permissions?

Thanks.

Keep_pedalling

As his attorney anything you do has to be solely in his best interest. If she is dependant on his income then to continue funding her expenses from income is probably OK, but transferring all his savings to her for instance would not be proper, and would be classed as deliberate deprivation of assets if it ever came down to assessing the ability to pay care costs.

troubleinparadise

The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) would be able to clarify whether you have the power to carry out the transactions you refer to, and whether those actions are in your father’s best interests.

incandescent

This is truly terrible news. Almost all their joint savings are in my dad's name but I presume they could now be consumed by future care costs, leaving my mum with very little.

Sea_Shell

It sounds like a tricky situation. If your Dad has always provided for your Mum then you'd think it would be simple, and that "joint" funds can continue to be used for "joint" living costs.

It's a worry that the OPG may see things in black & white, of his money (his interests) v. Mum's money (her interests)

Are his pensions being paid into a joint account? Do the household bills come out of this account?

It seems horrible to be put in the position of having to do things strictly in the interest of your Dad, at the direct detriment of your Mum!

Good luck.

Primrose

The logic of making a decision to transfer some money to your mother might be To argue that during their married lifetime this was how your father always ran his finances, ie sharing his income with your mother but I,m not sure how legally the Office of Public Guardian would interpret this.

Of course if you had P of A for your mother also and were at the same time required to act in her interest too, this would put you in a very difficult conflicting position but morally at least would seem to suggest an equal split of assets.

You could try contacting Age UK. I believe they have lawyers who may be able to help with such difficult legal matters and offer some guidance on how best to proceed.

You have my sympathy, finding yourself in this impossible situation.

incandescent

This is the case - they're an old fashioned couple where my dad had control of the finances. He's always been absolutely clear that he wanted my mum to continue to have access to the money and that he wanted her provided for when he's gone. In fact he said as much only a couple of weeks ago. Without access to the money I'm not sure how my mum would pay for many things. It's a really cruel situation.

I'll try speaking to the OPG.

Sea_Shell

Does your Dad still currently have the capacity to instruct you to make a transfer, of at least some of the savings now? If this is what he WOULD do, if able.

No point worrying about the what-ifs of ongoing care costs (your Mum would probably want to pay for him to be comfortable anyway) if she can't meet day to day household running costs (and personal spends)

Primrose

I echo Sea Shell's suggestion if your dad still has sufficient capacity to instruct you to make a cash transfer to your mum if you think he still has sufficient mental capacity to understand the reason for doing so.

But I also recommend, just to cover yourself, that you perhaps get a signed statement from an independent individual who witnessed the conversation between you that they considered your father capable to understanding the reason for so doing. it may not have any legal weight but might help to demonstrate that your dad still had the capacity to back up the decision.

Keep_pedalling

incandescent wrote: »

This is truly terrible news. Almost all their joint savings are in my dad's name but I presume they could now be consumed by future care costs, leaving my mum with very little.

What sort of accounts are the savings held in and how much are we talking about? If it is £17,500 or less (assuming he lives in Scotland) then it will not be taken for care costs, and anything above £28,000 will mean he would be fully self funding until his savings reached this threshold.

If the money is held in standard savings accounts then it may be possible to convert them to joint accounts.

Fire_Fox

incandescent wrote: »

Hi,

I have a continuing power of attorney for my father, who has dementia and have been managing his regular finances for some time, with his consent.

His dementia has worsened significantly during this time though and that makes it more difficult to discuss more significant financial matters with him, such as transferring money or assets to my mother.

I understand the tax implications of transferring financial assets between spouses, but my question is can I execute those transfers as his attorney or do we need any additional permissions?

Thanks.

Is there a history of your father routinely or regularly transferring money from bank accounts in his name to bank accounts in her name or in joint names?

Or were all household bills paid directly by him, but are now paid directly by her?

IMO contact the dementia charities, move onto the Office of the Public Guardian.

incandescent wrote: »

This is truly terrible news. Almost all their joint savings are in my dad's name but I presume they could now be consumed by future care costs, leaving my mum with very little.

There is no way on earth this is a unique situation. So there will be a legal solution!

Arguably the savings are marital assets, arguably your mother is dependent on your father. It may be she needs to make some sort of legal claim and get formally recognised. Poorly wording but hopefully you get my drift.