What is a lasting power of attorney?

A lasting power of attorney (LPA) is a legal document that lets you appoint someone, known as your attorney, that you trust to make important decisions for you if you’re ever unable to yourself.

No one automatically has the legal authority to make decisions for you about your health and care or about your financial affairs, not even your spouse or your children. Many people don’t realise this until it’s too late.

Without an LPA, someone who you may not have chosen will need to apply to the court for a deputyship order instead, which can be a lengthy and expensive process. If there isn’t a family member or friend willing to do this, the local authority will take control over decisions relating to your finances and welfare.

An accident or illness can happen at any time in life. To make an LPA, you need to have sufficient mental capacity to understand what you are doing. No one else can put this document in place for you after you have lost capacity.

If you wait until the LPA is needed to put one in place, it will already be too late.

If you lose the ability to make your own decisions, your bank accounts could become frozen until someone is granted the authority to step in and manage these for you.

If you don’t already have an LPA in place, someone would need to make an application to the court for a deputyship order. This can be a costly and lengthy process.

You can choose the extent of some of the powers you grant to your attorney and you can stipulate when and how these powers are used. You can also include guidance for your attorney outlining your preferences and choices in certain situations. This means they can make informed decisions that they know align with your wishes.

This is one of the reasons why it’s important to seek professional advice when making an LPA, to ensure that the document is drafted in the right way.

There are two types of LPA in England and Wales; one covers your health and care while the other covers your property and financial decisions. A health and care LPA will only come into effect if and when you lose capacity to make your own decisions.

If you are making a property and finances LPA, you can choose to activate it sooner if you want to (for example, if you want your attorney to be able to go to the bank on your behalf).

Your attorney cannot change or update your will. An LPA does not give them legal authority to do so.

By making an LPA, you are not granting your attorney free reign over your finances. You decide how much control an attorney has over your finances and you decide the limits on what they can and cannot do with your assets. Your attorney is legally obliged to act in your best interests at all times, and if they fail to do so, they can be held accountable by the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG).

Anyone can report the attorney to the OPG if they feel that the attorney is not acting in your best interests. The OPG will investigate the allegations to determine whether the LPA should be revoked.