Expression of wish form / beneficiaries for pension - changing when lost mental capacity?

itwasntme001

I am an LPA attorney (finance and health) for my parent who is likely to lose mental capacity unfortunately. Their pension has a completed expression of wish form but we have agreed verbally that this might change next year, if the parent is still alive, given the pension estate changes from April 2027.

Would the changes I make be acted on by pension administrators given the LPA in place and assuming the parent has lost mental capacity when I do make the changes?

squirrelpie

Might you get a better answer if you ask the pension administrators themselves? If you and your parent write a joint letter to them and explain the circumstances and both sign it, it may help them to say yes.

dunstonh

Most providers will take written scenarios nowadays. Not just the name and percentage.

So, check if the pension provider in question here does and then write the expression of wish with the desired scenarios and dates effective from.

DRS1

Is there any reason he can't write an expression of wishes now which says "If I die before x then this is who I would like to benefit and if I die after x then this is who I would like to benefit"?

Keep_pedalling

As an attorney you can only make decisions that are in the best interest of the donor if they have lost mental capacity, the LPA does not give you the authority to change things like this.

itwasntme001

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81911105#Comment_81911105

So can I change the beneficiary details after mental capacity has been lost as long as it is in the best interest of the parent? If so how do you prove it was in the best interests of the parent?

Or are you saying for pension beneficiaries, I am not allowed to at all even with an LPA? If this is true then what about other financial decisions?

dunstonh

So can I change the beneficiary details after mental capacity has been lost as long as it is in the best interest of the parent? If so how do you prove it was in the best interests of the parent?

Because your parent still has mental capacity, the key point is that any change to the pension expression of wish should be made and signed by them personally, even though the LPA is already in place in the background. it hasn't ben triggered yet.

You can certainly help by explaining options, discussing who they want to benefit and filling in the form, but the provider will usually expect it to be your parent’s own decision and signature while they are able to understand what they’re doing.

squirrelpie

A financial LPA can be written so that it can be registered and brought into use even though the donor has not lost the ability to take their own decisions. But we don't know exactly what words were used in the LPA.

But the .gov.uk site says "You cannot change a donor’s will." which is fairly close to what is being asked and is as close as anything else stated.

So it sounds like @DRS1 suggestion is best.

itwasntme001

Thanks, so it seems judging by some comments that it is important for my parent to mention future wish to change beneficiary allocations etc.

The LPA is applicable even without parent needing to be mentally uncapable.

The pension is with ii, and it looks like under their expression of wishes page, additional comments can be added, so presumably this is where my parent needs to mention about the change in beneficiary details/allocation from April 2027?

DRS1

It looks like ii have an online form to fill in. I couldn't get to it but it may not be set out in a way which makes it easy to say what I suggested. It may have set boxes for naming beneficiaries and allocating percentages to each of them and then the other comments bit. I don't know how radical the changes are from 2027 but would the other comments bit allow for naming a completely new set of beneficiaries?

It might be easier if they let you write your own expression of wishes and just upload that but do they allow that?

Keep_pedalling

You don’t have to fill a form, only your parent can do that. The LPA does not give you the authority to make changes to benefit 3rd parties.