My brother has received money from my confused mother without going via the lpa

GrubbyGirl_2

As already mentioned the OPG is very helpful and can look into things.  In my professional life I was concerned about the son of one of our clients, who was her LPA, was abusing his mothers finances.  I asked the OPG to investigate and they concluded he had in fact taken £50k.  They prosecuted and he only escaped a custodial sentence because he claimed to have a gambling addition.  He did however get a 2 year suspended sentence and was required to pay the money back.  In addition he was struck ff as a registered nurse.  I know this doesn't relate to your brother but gives a view on how serious this can be.

I will however counter that with the fact that unless you can prove your mother does lack capacity over her money and finances she is perfectly entitled to make her own decisions however unwise they may be, and while that may be hard for you, it's her money and her choice.  She does however need to be mindful (as does your brother) that if she needs care it may be seen as deliberate deprivation of assets and your brother may find he needs to pay it back, however contributing to a grandchild's wedding is a reasonable use of money. 

born_again

JacCritter said:

I am going to call Parkinson's UK tomorrow about the problems I am having communicating with my mother in the face of continual criticism and accusations. My brother and I both have the health and welfare lpoa, not activated. My mother hasn't asked me to activate it and I don't know about my brother. 
I will call the guardians office if I can. I assumed it was all done via the website and fact sheets these days but perhaps not.
Thanks for your suggestions.

Would anyone that has lost mental capacity ask anyone to activate LPA?

JacCritter

Can I ask to opg to look into my mother's bank accounts when, as far as I know, she hasn't activated the lpa?
I'm aware that the decision to spend her money as she wishes is hers, but it's hard to listen to her telling me how she's always treated her children fairly when she hasn't even told me she's cashed in the income bond. 
And the money wasn't given to my niece for her wedding, it was given to my brother to give to his daughter for her wedding. He's getting very nervous that his daughter might find out how he got the money.

Thanks for your comments.

JacCritter

born_again said:

JacCritter said:

I am going to call Parkinson's UK tomorrow about the problems I am having communicating with my mother in the face of continual criticism and accusations. My brother and I both have the health and welfare lpoa, not activated. My mother hasn't asked me to activate it and I don't know about my brother. 
I will call the guardians office if I can. I assumed it was all done via the website and fact sheets these days but perhaps not.
Thanks for your suggestions.

Would anyone that has lost mental capacity ask anyone to activate LPA?

This is the problem I have with this whole system. She doesn't think she's lost mental capacity and hasn't asked me to take over the admin for her finances. I'm fairly sure my brother has no such scruples and is looking at her bank account as his private cash machine.

soulsaver

JacCritter said:

born_again said:

JacCritter said:

I am going to call Parkinson's UK tomorrow about the problems I am having communicating with my mother in the face of continual criticism and accusations. My brother and I both have the health and welfare lpoa, not activated. My mother hasn't asked me to activate it and I don't know about my brother. 
I will call the guardians office if I can. I assumed it was all done via the website and fact sheets these days but perhaps not.
Thanks for your suggestions.

Would anyone that has lost mental capacity ask anyone to activate LPA?

This is the problem I have with this whole system. She doesn't think she's lost mental capacity and hasn't asked me to take over the admin for her finances. I'm fairly sure my brother has no such scruples and is looking at her bank account as his private cash machine.

I'd start at the charity, they'll have been here before. 

As an aside, it sounds like she should be encouraged to apply for Attendance Allowance.

JacCritter

I have spoken to the charity and they have suggested a speak to her neurologist and GP about her behavioural changes and contact a counsellor about my own reactions to the changes in her and the isolation from my family. I will also contact the guardian.
She already gets attendance allowance after the first visit to A&e a couple of years ago.

Thanks

GrubbyGirl_2

How are you determining the fact that you feel she has lost capacity to make financial decisions?  Behavioural changes do not necessarily indicate lack of capacity. If your doctor arranges a formal capacity assessment there is a process they go through to determine capacity. It’s also quite onerous in as much as capacity is decision specific it isn’t a general blanket test. 

You do have to prepare yourself to the fact that she may be assessed to have capacity to make financial decisions, albeit unwise ones, and just because they disadvantage you rather than your brother doesn’t mean she can’t make them. Also if she has capacity you don’t have a right, as her LPA in waiting, to have any information about her money so she doesn’t have to tell you why she cashed in her bond and what she did with the money. 

I don’t want to sound hard, so sorry if I do, but I fear she may be assessed as having capacity and you risk becoming estranged from your mum at the time she may need you most. 

Zanderman

I'm a bit confused.  You're suggesting you think there's any LPA element to this? It seems your brother may have received some money from your mother. By some means. Possibly by mother directly.

But why suggest (in your thread title) that money has been given 'without going via the LPA' as if that is wrong in LPA terms? It shouldn't be being given with the LPA.

An LPA doesn't give attorneys the right to withdraw money for themselves. It gives a duty to manage the finances responsibly for the account holder, not gift it to themselves. 

If the LPA has been used by your brother to gift money to himself, then it's a breach of his LPA duties. So you need to find out if the LPA has been used like this and, if so, report it.  

JacCritter

GrubbyGirl_2 said:

How are you determining the fact that you feel she has lost capacity to make financial decisions?  Behavioural changes do not necessarily indicate lack of capacity. If your doctor arranges a formal capacity assessment there is a process they go through to determine capacity. It’s also quite onerous in as much as capacity is decision specific it isn’t a general blanket test. 

You do have to prepare yourself to the fact that she may be assessed to have capacity to make financial decisions, albeit unwise ones, and just because they disadvantage you rather than your brother doesn’t mean she can’t make them. Also if she has capacity you don’t have a right, as her LPA in waiting, to have any information about her money so she doesn’t have to tell you why she cashed in her bond and what she did with the money. 

I don’t want to sound hard, so sorry if I do, but I fear she may be assessed as having capacity and you risk becoming estranged from your mum at the time she may need you most. 

I have contacted her GP with my concerns about her behavioural changes so they may assess her more thoroughly than they seem to have so far.

JacCritter

Zanderman said:

I'm a bit confused.  You're suggesting you think there's any LPA element to this? It seems your brother may have received some money from your mother. By some means. Possibly by mother directly.

But why suggest (in your thread title) that money has been given 'without going via the LPA' as if that is wrong in LPA terms? It shouldn't be being given with the LPA.

An LPA doesn't give attorneys the right to withdraw money for themselves. It gives a duty to manage the finances responsibly for the account holder, not gift it to themselves. 

If the LPA has been used by your brother to gift money to himself, then it's a breach of his LPA duties. So you need to find out if the LPA has been used like this and, if so, report it.  

My mother is framing the lpa and the fact that we are joint executors of her will as an example of how equally she treats us. 
As I say, I don't know if he has accessed the lpa or anything else with or without her permission because she bites my head off every time I ask. So I've stopped asking.