Power of attorney for Step Mum who has been scammed

Robin9

Jax_gee said:

Thank you all for your advice, it is really helpful!!
We know about the scams as they've told us about them! They've bought Chinese wine, apartments that do not exist, land, they sold my father Bugatti for £300k and that's all gone, they have property somewhere that does exist and are paying ground rent even though no-one is in there.

Who is "they" ?

nanapop1977

Jax_gee - you say that your Dad made a will leaving you a property, but that step-mum changed this. Do you mean that she encouraged him to make a new will in which she inherited all his estate? Who administered (acted as executor) his estate after he passed away?

Also who facilitated step-mum's move into a care home? There may be a social worker you could speak to who could explain the immediate future regarding her care funding?

From what you've said, step-mum's affairs seem very muddled and the neighbours seem a bit too close for comfort! I think I would want to be visiting the house and try to find out what all these "fines" and other demands for money are all about! You will be acting in step-mum's best interests (informally) if you can sort things out on her behalf, because it sounds very much as if she is no longer able to cope with doing it for herself.

RAS

Jak_gee

It may be worth trying to get a handle on some of the facts before making any further decisions?

Check Search for property information from HM Land Registry - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) to find out in whose name(s) the house is registered. That'll also show up any secured loans, lifetime mortgages etc. £3

If dad's will went to probate, it'll be here  Find a will | GOV.UK (probatesearch.service.gov.uk) start the year he died and move forwards. If you find it download for £1.50

Zoopla or rightmove would tell you roughly what similar houses in their area are fetching.

If step-mum is not living in the house, council tax, insurance and utilities need looking at. If there is a garden, that needs a little TLC before it yells "abandoned house." And as the nights draw in the heating and lighting need organising.


If step-mum can be persuaded to let anyone have authority to sort things out, a Subject Access Request to each bank or financial institution would identify any payouts in the last 6 years. 

And if they've been paying loyalty penalties, you might well shave half or more of any regular bills just by changing supplier (65% in my mums case, although one supplier had stopped charging her further until the massive surplus was run down).

elsien

Jax_gee said:

Another question sorry guys!
If her financials were just .......left what would happen then? If she passes would the state just sell the house and pay off all debts that way? I cannot see her agreeing to us picking this up for her and the fee's for becoming a deputy are high, we are not wealthy by any means and cannot afford and I also expect there could be no money left after sorting things to pay for the fees?

Any deputyship fees would come from her money, not from yours. Presuming that she lacks capacity round her finances, which is unclear from what you’ve posted. Poor decisions don’t mean lack of capacity. If she doesn’t go home, a deputyship would be needed in order to sell the house to pay for any care costs, if needed. If she owes fees, the local authority would put a deferred charge on the property pending a deputyship being in place.  If you do not wish to do it, (and there is no obligation) then you need to let the relevant people know. The state can’t sell the house because they have no legal mechanism for doing so. If she dies with nothing sorted, the executors of her estate would need to sort out any money owing once her property is sold.

elsien

The quickest way forwards is likely to be to phone up the adult social care duty team for her home address and ask if she has an allocated social worker. Someone has been arranging those carers for her.

If she is known to social services but does not currently have an allocated worker then explain your concerns with regards to financial abuse and ask for one to be allocated as a priority. You can explain your relationship and that you would like to help. However again going back to capacity this is time and decision specific - she may have capacity for some decisions and not others. But if she is well enough and does not want your help then she had the right to say that,

You need to be very careful about what you are giving consent for without having a fuller picture because although you clearly mean well, you don't have the right to consent to anything on her behalf at the moment. Does she know the neighbour is opening her post and how does she feel about it?