Lasting Power of Attorney
If you have no Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA), and you lose mental capacity due to age, injury or an illness like dementia or Alzheimer’s, it can take many months for the Court of Protection to give legal rights over your money to your family members so they can use it to look after you in your time of need.
In the meantime, your bank accounts may be frozen, meaning any costs paid on your behalf will have to be borne by the people closest to you – not to mention the legal fees, which can quickly add up to in excess of £3,000.
Why complete a lasting power of attorney?:
Protect your wealth from getting into the wrong hands
Prevent friends and family from having to use their own money to pay your bills
Define who will be responsible for your financial affairs
Grant access to your bank accounts and investments
Define who will be responsible for important medical decisions
Give your attorney(s) the authority to dictate your healthcare arrangements
The best way to ensure important financial decisions can be made on your behalf if the need arises is to register a Property & Financial LPA while you’re still fit, healthy and of good mind. This document allows you to place the responsibility of handling your greatest assets in the hands of a person who you are certain will act in your best interests. You will need to set up a separate Health & Welfare LPA if you want to allow somebody else to look after your welfare and healthcare; this document gives the attorney the power to make important care decisions on your behalf, from deciding on your living arrangements to giving consent for life sustaining treatment.
A Lasting Power of Attorney doesn’t have to come into play straightaway. You can specify that your representative can only look after your affairs if you lose capacity. And in most cases, you only need to create an LPA once for it to remain effective.
Why choose us?:
Get expert advice from highly experienced estate planning specialists
All instructions are checked and approved by qualified solicitors
Free consultations at a location of your choice
Evening and weekend appointments available
Document storage for complete peace of mind
From choosing the right trustees to selecting the most appropriate vehicle for your assets, our trust planning specialists can take the hassle out of rearranging your financial affairs.
We can help you ring fence your wealth using basic trusts, interest in possession trusts, discretionary trusts, Tenants in Common arrangements, disability trusts and more.