Deputyship being considered: general advice please

swecri

I am an advocate and am supporting an individual (JL) and his family. The individual suffered a brain injury 25 years ago which has left him with brain damage- namely cognitive and behaviour difficulties, speech and language issues, memory loss, balance and mobility issues and capacity issues. 
The family have had no support from any professionals during the last 25 years and remarkably have struggled through very difficult times including watching him be financially exploited and abused, seeing him spiral into addictions to alcohol and drugs as well as difficulties with his behaviour which have resulted in him being arrested. 
He lives with his mother who has a mortgage and cares for him whilst working full time. She receives no financial support. His only income is a claim for ESA from what I can gather, this is contribution based of approx £100 a week. 
I have only recently started working with him but one of the first things I plan to do with him and his mother is support them to make a claim for PIP.  
20 years ago, JL received a large sum of money in compensation for his injuries which he sustained as a result of an accident. At the time, it was agreed that this money would be placed in a trust fund for him with supervision loosely agreed on his spending. His ability to manage his money was severely impaired and over the years he has been exploited and taken advantage of. He bought a house for himself and his father to live in, but he was unable to afford his living expenses. He abused alcohol and drugs and sold his house to pay for his lifestyle. His lack of support and apparent 'slipping through the net' (probably exacerbated by his poor capacity) have not helped and his family were not advised or supported to help him. After several holidays abroad and many instances of women taking money from him, he was penniless and forced to return home to live with his mother. She looks after him, feeds him, clothes, and puts a roof over his head. He is unable to work and his cognitive function is worsening- in particular his memory is very poor and his mother suspects he has started suffering the early onset of dementia. 
His mother is becoming increasingly unable to cope. His behaviour is more and more difficult to manage and as she turns 65, she is desperate to stop working, but cannot afford to retire whilst financial supporting him.
It has recently emerged that JL has been sending money from his ESA (sometimes even all of it at once) to a woman in America who he has never me and claims to love him. She claims to need money from him to pay for an airline ticket to visit him and be with him, but he has been sending money to her for 3 years and she is yet to emerge or even phone him (they talk online). When he sends her money, he often sends all of his ESA on his payday and means he has no money for two weeks. In this time he turns to his mother for money and has often stolen from her. JL lies a lot: it is strongly suspected that the amount of money he has sent this woman is far more than he claims.
The family state in recent years, he has been contacted by finance companies over the phone chasing him to sign up to loans and credit cards. He has also been sent a 'free' iPad and Apple Watch. Upon his mother explaining that this is not 'free' and Apple are taking the money out of his account over a long period of time with interest, he has not accepted this principle and seems to be unable to comprehend that he has in fact taken out a finance agreement. 
JL's family are exhausted. His behaviour is becoming more and more difficult to manage and his mother states she can no longer cope with his behaviour- particularly his recklessness with money through his vulnerability and exploitation. She is terrified that he will continue to take out loans that he cannot repay, and consequently she will have to repay this for him. She is financially stretched herself and seems overwhelmed and completely defeated. 
As such, I have been researching the concept of Deputyship and it seems so far, that its the most appropriate and best option for JL. His mother agrees, as does the wider family who are also very concerned about his behaviour. Upon trying my best to explain to JL what deputyship means, he fully agreed with me and flippantly said "I agree with everything you say" seemingly unable to understand what I'd said, despite my attempts to try and deliver the information in a simple context using both visual and simple written statements to help him retain the information. He seems completely unable to comprehend any information he's given and doesn't seem to have capacity at all. 
With this in mind, everyone is keen and in agreement to pursue an application for Deputyship with the view of his mother managing his money on his behalf. That said, I have been unable to establish quite what Deputyship entails once it's in place and I would be grateful for any information...
Is anyone able to clarify the following?:
Will Deputyship mean he is rejected for any credit applications he makes?
Will it stop companies chasing him (and being allowed to  chase him) with 'free' iPads etc?
When Deputyship is in place, does this show up on a persons credit profile?
Are companies unable to lend to someone who has a Deputyship in place?
I cannot find anything online and as an Advocate, this will be the first time I have supported a family to make a Deputyship application, I am keen to be able to inform and reassure the family with he facts surrounding this. 

Thank you in advance- I realise its a long and complex story, I hope I've captured it well and done it justice

MovingForwards

Will Deputyship mean he is rejected for any credit applications he makes?
-- no, he shouldn't be making applications as all financial matters are dealt with by the guardian.

Will it stop companies chasing him (and being allowed to  chase him) with 'free' iPads etc?
-- no, the guardian contacts creditors to explain the situation, they may / may not write the debt off, more than likely a debt payment plan will have to be set up.

When Deputyship is in place, does this show up on a persons credit profile?
-- no, only the OPG keep records.

Are companies unable to lend to someone who has a Deputyship in place?
-- no, see first answer.

Here is a link which explains what a guardianship role involves:

https://www.gov.uk/become-deputy

swecri

Thank you for your response. I’ve already researched most govt websites and understand fully that the guardian should manage the finances. That said, what if he gets approached by said companies? What about if he defies the order and reaches out to a loan company and tries to get credit? What stops this?! 

MovingForwards

swecri said:

Thank you for your response. I’ve already researched most govt websites and understand fully that the guardian should manage the finances. That said, what if he gets approached by said companies? What about if he defies the order and reaches out to a loan company and tries to get credit? What stops this?! 

The guardian should have all the companies update the address to the guardians address.

If he decides to apply / obtain credit with a company who he doesn't already deal with and therefore isn't aware of the guardianship, there's nothing you can do, nothing stops it.

All you can do is write to them, provide the address for communication and a copy of the proof you (or whoever) is acting, offer to return item / repay money, if a loan, and the money is still in the account. If the money is gone, advise of lack of capacity, ask them to write it off and if they won't, that's another for repayment instalments.

swecri

Thanks for this information- May I ask if you’ve had experience of this?

MovingForwards

swecri said:

Thanks for this information- May I ask if you’ve had experience of this?

Not personal but due to my previous career; getting the paperwork done, discussing obligations etc.