If you are unable to make decisions for yourself (known as loss of capacity) your spouse or civil partner will not be able to take over dealing with your bank accounts (including joint accounts), pensions, investments etc unless you have a registered LPA in place. Also, it is probable that privately funded care homes will not accept someone as a resident if there is no LPA in place.
In these circumstances your spouse or another person will need to apply to the Court of Protection who will ultimately appoint a Deputy to make decisions on your behalf. This is a lengthy and expensive process.
Clearly for people living on their own it is very important to consider making an LPA whilst they still have capacity.
If you have an up to date LPA in place and it is already registered with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) your attorney (previously chosen by you) can make decisions on your behalf immediately.
There are 2 types of LPA:
- A Financial Affairs LPA can cover things such as:
- buying, selling or renting property,
- paying the mortgage, arranging repairs to property.
- investing money
- paying bills
- A Health and Welfare LPA can only be used once you have lost mental capacity. An attorney can make decisions about things such as:
- where you should live
- your medical care
- what you should eat
- decisions on end of life care
It is important to note that you can only set up an LPA while you have capacity. The OPG currently take about 20 weeks to register an LPA.
At Harvest we have seen the distressing situations that can arise when a loved one loses capacity with no registered LPA in place. And it can happen to all ages as this interview with Heather Batemen on BBC 1’s The One Show illustrates.
If you already have an Enduring Power of Attorney (which were replaced by LPAs in 2007) it would be appropriate to review your circumstances as EPAs have some limitations when compared to LPAs and are generally not already registered with the OPG.
Harvest Estate Planning 