It is widely understood that making a Will is one of the most important documents needed in respect of managing your assets and ensuring they go to the correct people upon your death. However, a Will is only applicable upon death. More importantly and surprisingly considered less is ‘What would happen to your assets if you lost the capacity to deal with them yourself during your lifetime?’

It may surprise you to know that if this were to happen and no measure had been taken in advance, an individual can not simply take charge of your affairs on your behalf, even if they are your spouse. In order to deal with any assets that are in your sole name, they would need to apply to the court to be appointed your deputy. This process can take around 4-6 months and is very costly, often costing £1,500 and above. It also puts the person applying to become the deputy in a difficult situation. If they need access to the person’s assets to pay for things such as bills, care fees, they will have to wait until the order is granted or pay for it themselves. Banks and financial institutions will not allow access to any funds in the sole name of the person who has lost capacity unless a Deputyship order has been presented to them or indeed a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is in place.

This presents the question ‘What can I do to ensure that someone can easily take charge of my finances if I lose capacity?’ The answer is very simple, make a Lasting Power of Attorney.

A Lasting Power of Attorney gives another person the right to make decisions on your behalf in respect of either your property and finances or your welfare. An LPA can even be used if you still have capacity to make those decisions but would like assistance in doing so, for instance if you need help setting up direct debits and need a relative to do it for you.

The LPA needs to be registered before it can be used and this process takes around 6-7 weeks. We recommend the document is registered immediately so that if you lose capacity in the future, the appointed attorney can immediately start to make decisions on your behalf.

A question often asked is ‘What if I never lose capacity or need help with my finances, I will have wasted my money?’ the answer to this is of course yes, however we see making an LPA as a kind of insurance policy. Like with your car or household insurance, it is unlikely you will ever make a claim on these policies, but you have them in place to make it easier and cheaper in case you do. Making an LPA is exactly the same. We all hope we never lose capacity, however it is a stark fact of life that an increasing number of people lose mental capacity. Recent estimates suggest a staggering 1 in 3 people are likely to suffer from some sort of dementia, with more than 35 million people worldwide currently estimated to have dementia.

At Breens Solicitors we believe that making a Lasting Power of Attorney is equally if not more important than making a Will. Having an LPA in place ensures your family can continue to manage your affairs on your behalf without involving the court and without the delay involved in making an application to the court. At what can already be a stressful time, an LPA can make your family or friend’s responsibilities much easier to carry out.

If you would like to discuss making a Lasting Power of Attorney in more detail please contact us. Click here.