Help your attorney to help you

A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) allows someone else to take over responsibility for your finances or care if needed. 

 

Your attorney can be responsible for all aspects of your wellbeing, so it’s an important decision for you to make. Most people ask a close friend or relative, but it’s important that they understand your wishes and what the role involves. 

 

The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) can investigate the actions of attorneys or deputies, who are appointed if you don’t have an LPA. In the 2022/23 year the OPG closed 2,504 cases, compared to 2,411 the previous year. In most cases the OPG was satisfied no further action was needed. Some attorneys were asked to re-account for their activities to show they were following the code of practice. However, two out of 10 investigations were referred to the Court of Protection for action. 

 

One reason investigations are increasing is that more of us are deciding to put LPAs in place. However, many people who act as attorneys don’t have any previous experience and can accidentally make mistakes. 

 

Your attorney should make decisions in your best interest and take account of decisions you have made in the past. Wherever possible they should make decisions in keeping with your previous choices, so they should know you well. 

 

To help your attorney, you should give some guidance, ideally in writing. If your attorney has any strong objections to your wishes you might need to choose someone else. 

 

It’s important your family, friends, carers, and advisers know who you have chosen and what you’ve asked them to do. 

 

This helps everyone understand the implications of your wishes, and it could prevent problems later on. It’s very helpful to let your doctor, council and bank know who has been appointed as your attorney. 

 

One of the biggest challenges for your attorney is finding out what’s needed. You can help them a lot by keeping good records. File things like utility bills and bank statements so your attorney can find them easily. 

 

They should also keep records of any decisions they make on your behalf and why. In case they’re needed, it’s also a good idea to have several certified copies of your LPAs in your files. 

 

To make it clear what your attorney does on your behalf, they must keep your money separate from their own. 

 

In some circumstances your attorney can give gifts on your behalf. The test is ‘reasonableness’. This could include wedding gifts or financial help to someone you have helped before or who is related to you. 

 

The overall size of your estate will indicate whether the gift is of a ‘reasonable value’. It’s also important to make sure you will have enough left for your own needs. This might apply if you need to go into a care home in the future, for example. 

 

There’s useful guidance for attorneys on the government’s website.