Lasting Powers Of Attorney
In an unpredictable world, ensuring your future well-being becomes paramount. A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) empowers you to prepare for the unforeseen, allowing a trusted person of your choice to navigate decisions regarding your health, welfare, property, and financial affairs if you were to face a loss of mental capacity due to accident or illness.
As we age, the risk of conditions like strokes, brain injuries, or Parkinson’s disease rises. Over 850,000 people in the UK grapple with dementia, according to the Alzheimer’s Society. The loss of mental capacity could potentially render you or a joint account holder incapable of managing daily affairs, accessing bank accounts, paying bills, or maintaining your home – unless you’ve taken the essential step of preparing an LPA.
A Health & Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney: A Shield in Vulnerability
Empower yourself with a Health & Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney, designating a trusted attorney to act on your behalf when making decisions becomes challenging.
Your chosen attorney becomes the guardian of your daily and medical care, living arrangements, and life-sustaining treatments – a comforting prospect during times of vulnerability. This proactive step not only saves you from potential distress but also prevents significant financial burdens.
A Health & Welfare LPA eliminates the need for your family to endure the arduous, costly legal process of applying to the Court of Protection for deputy authority in case of unforeseen circumstances.
A Property & Financial Affairs LPA: Empowering Your Present and Future
Differing from the Health & Welfare LPA, the Property & Financial Affairs LPA safeguards your interests before the need arises.
Upon registering this LPA, you grant your attorney the authority to handle crucial financial matters like bill payments, benefit collection, investment management, and property transactions on your behalf.
Why Act Now?
In a FREE, no-obligation meeting, we delve into your unique circumstances, offering tailored recommendations to protect you, your family, and your assets. Don’t let uncertainty compromise your peace of mind – take charge of your future with a Lasting Power of Attorney.
Lasting Powers Of Attorney Frequently Asked Questions
What are Lasting Powers Of Attorney?
An LPA is a legal document that lets you appoint people to make decisions on your behalf, decisions you would have made if you had been able. Making an LPA can be quite time consuming and has to be done correctly, as if done incorrectly the LPA cannot be used, and you might not discover this until it is too late to rectify any mistakes.
Do I need Lasting Powers Of Attorney?
Do my Attorneys need to be at the signing meeting?
No, the LPAS need to be signed in a specific order:
1st the Donor – Section 5 (LPA HW ONLY) section 9 and any continuation pages.
2nd the Certificate Provider – this will be the Attestation Officer (or whoever is going to the signing meeting) They can get a Doctor to sign as Certificate Provider this is Section 10.
3rd the Attorneys- They need to sign after the Donor and the Certificate Provider – if the Attorneys can’t make the signing meeting (to me it’s better) as it will be signed on a different day and with a different witness – We can send the attorney pages to the attorneys if they’d prefer – this is Section 11.
4th Registration – Section 15 needs to be signed and dated after the Attorneys.
Can I sign now? – before the meeting
Try your best to discourage this – as it will likely be signed incorrectly.
We suggest that you wait for the attestation officer to go through the document page by page with you and make sure you are happy to sign.
What if my children live abroad?
There are few ways to deal with this …
* Send via email the LPA after the signing meeting and tell them to send back Section 11 via mail- make sure that they know what the address is to send back to the office.
* If they don’t have email, send via post and send a stamped address envelope in the post with them so they know where to send it back to.
* If their children are visiting – get them to sign and witness.
* If they going to visit them soon – take the certain paperwork with them and return.
Who can witness the signatures for the LPAS?
If you are having a signing meeting – the attestation officer will witness the signatures.
If the Attorneys aren’t present it is important someone over the AGE of 18 and no relation to the Donor.
How long does the Registration take?
Usually the Registration at the Office of the Public Guardian can take on average 8-10 weeks. Depending on how busy they are.
* By law the Office of the Public Guardian need to give 4 weeks once they have received the documentation to notify the Attorneys that they are registering the LPA.
* If there are any mistakes on the LPAs, they can take further to register and may even pay again.
How much is the registration of the LPAs?
If you have any income over 12K a year you will need to pay £82 per LPA that needs to be registered.
HOWEVER, if you have an annual income of below 12K or have certain disabilities (check the LPA120A form) they can apply for a remission.
The remission means you get 50% off per LPA – meaning you pay £41 per document.
What happens after they are registered?
If we act as correspondence – the document will come back to Everest Estate Planning after registration where we can keep copies for our records. If you would like for us to look after document storage we will arrange this. Alternatively, if you would like to keep your documents in a safe place, we can arrange for them to be forwarded to you.
If you are are unsure as to the registration process we are happy to act as correspondence with the OPG this way.
If you are marked as the correspondent, the documents will come directly to you.
When should I make an LPA?
It is advisable to make an LPA as soon as possible. The future is uncertain, and having your wishes clearly outlined sooner rather than later ensures that your affairs are promptly addressed if and when necessary.
When can my LPA be used?
The financial LPA can be used once registered with the Office of the Public Guardian. The Health & Welfare LPA can only be used when registered and if you are unable to make decisions due to a loss of mental capacity.
Who are the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG)?
The OPG is the government body established to protect individuals lacking mental capacity. They maintain registers of EPAs and LPAs.
Do I lose control of my money when I sign an LPA for Property and Financial Affairs?
No, you retain complete control over your finances while having the flexibility for assistance when needed.
I have more questions!
Please organise a FREE Consultation and Mark Everest would be happy to assist you in making a decision about Lasting Powers Of Attorney.
