Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) are as important as making a will. They allow you to decide which people you trust to make decisions on your behalf if you become ill or incapacitated in the future.
Here are ten reasons why you should make Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) as part of your planning for the future, no matter what your age. Act today before it’s too late.
1. Trusted access to your on-line accounts
So much of our lives is conducted on-line these days. If you are no longer able to make your own decisions, who has legal access to your account login and passwords?
With LPA you decide who has access to your on-line accounts. The majority of banks, for example, add a login for the attorney when the LPA is invoked, so your trusted person can manage your accounts if you are unable to, or with you if you simply need help. Otherwise, without the legal authority of an LPA, your bank accounts including joint accounts, may be frozen for some months.
2. You decide who is in control of your financial affairs
If you become incapacitated, do you know who has the power to make financial decisions on your behalf?
With a Property and Finance LPA in place, you decide the person you want to act as your attorney. Otherwise, an individual, or someone in an organisation, may be making financial decisions on your behalf, who you feel may not have your best interests at heart. Have a look at our EPA vs LPA article.
3. You decide who has the power to take medical decisions on your behalf
Do you know who has the power to make medical and welfare decisions on your behalf, if you are unable to?
With a Health and Welfare LPA in place you decide in advance who can take the best decisions on your behalf, not simply the medical and care profession or Local Authority.
4. Make Lasting Powers of Attorney and forget them, until needed
If you wait too long, and become ill or have an accident, you may no longer have the capacity to take out LPA.
You can make LPA when you are fit and healthy, put to one side, and have the peace of mind that they are only invoked when you no longer have capacity and need to be protected.
5. Ensure your family can continue to finance your home or other property
Mortgages, re-mortgages and the ultimate sale of a property depend upon all owners having capacity and able to sign. You can protect these important assets against the risk of one owner being unable to sign with a Property and Finance LPA.
6. More than one trusted person can be appointed
You may have in mind more than one person that you would like to have the power to make decisions on your behalf. You can name multiple attorneys who can make decisions together or separately. If each has individual decision-making responsibility, this also ensures you still have representation if one of your attorneys dies. If you only want one attorney with responsibility, but you want someone in reserve in case your first choice dies or is incapacitated in their own right, you can nominate a successor to take over the role when it becomes appropriate for them to do so.
7. Protection against misuse of your money and assets
With an LPA in place your attorney can’t just use your money and assets to their advantage not yours. Financial gifts are limited, and investment decisions protected. The Court of Protection can revoke invalid LPAs and the Public Guardian can be contacted if an attorney doesn’t appear to be acting in your best interests. Without an LPA you don’t have this protection.
8. Peace of mind for your family without difficulty or hardship
If something happens to render you incapable of managing your affairs, or even communicating your wishes, your family will face a great deal of difficulty or even financial hardship. An LPA protects your interests and provides a legal vehicle for the management of your financial and health affairs.
9. Ensure your wishes are known
An LPA is an excellent opportunity to provide guidance to your attorneys on how they should conduct your affairs and how you wished to be cared for and treated. Without this, your loved ones can only guess at your wishes.
10. Ensure your business affairs are looked after
If you own a business, you appoint a payroll expert or trusted person or persons, your attorney, to look after your business affairs when you are unable to deal with them yourself because you are away, are ill or injured. Your business is protected as well as your personal affairs.
With the guidance of our LPA team we can help you quickly and easily set-up your LPAs.
“When my mother had a stroke, she lost the capacity to manage her financial affairs and take decisions about her health. I was so grateful that she had LPAs in place naming me as her representative so I could manage her affairs with ease and for her benefit.”
Our expert team are available to guide you through the process of making your Lasting Powers of Attorney, quickly and easily. Contact us today.
