I have POA for my mother but what happens if anything happens to me?

[mrsapple]

Mum signed Enduring POA in 1996, which I registered in 2008 (she has had Vas D since 2007) - my brother and I were named as co-attorneys. I have had full responsibility for my mum's financial and health issues over the past 5 years. However, my brother has since died, my mother seems physically very well and I'm not in the best of health.

I've been told that it's not possible to add another attorney to the existing POA (ie my husband or daughter), and that a whole new POA would have to be drawn up and registered. My mum does not have capacity to sign anything any more, so what would I have to do to ensure that if anything happened to me there will always be a family member able to deal with all her financial and health affairs?

Any advice would be much appreciated!

 

[jenniferpa]

The only possible option, if that happened, is for your husband or daughter to apply to become a deputy. There's not actually anything you, as the attorney, can do to get a head start on this (unless you wish to resign as attorney and get one of them to apply to be a deputy at this time).

 

[Katrine]

If a POA fails because the attorney dies or is incapacitated, then someone would have to apply to the COP to be appointed as a Deputy (Guardian in Scotland). Sorry, I am in a similar situation to you. You, as sole attorney, can delegate things to other people to help you, but must have overall control. No-one else could stand in for you in most financial management situations, but you can use an accountant, solicitor etc. If needed.

Not sure if it's the same in England, but a Scottish guardianship supersedes any existing POA, so the attorney does not have to resign first, but is consulted as part of the formal process. I don't think the Court would accept an application from an existing attorney plus others, e.g. substitutes, as deputies, but if there is a good reason like the sole remaining attorney being mentally competent but in poor health it might be worth seeking advice from a solicitor experienced in this area of law.

 

[mrsapple]

Thank you all so much for your advice. It was a solicitor who mentioned about this just in passing, when I told him that my brother had died. I think my husband/daughter would have to go down the deputy-ship route if the situation arises that I go before mum - it makes the most sense. This is just one of the many many things I worry about in the middle of the night!!!

 

[Katrine]

Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof - Don't meet trouble half way - It's not worth losing sleep over what might happen..... Is that enough feel good cliches to be getting on with?

The hassle and expense of replacing your POA with deputyship in case anything happens to you is not worth doing yet. Solicitors say stick with POA if you possibly can as deputyship/guardianship involves a lot of administration and supervision, which you want to avoid if you can. Attorneys have been given their powers willingly by the donor whereas in the alternative scenario the courts have to grant powers without the permission of the person concerned. This is why the scrutiny is so heavy-duty in comparison.

 

[Katrine]

To avoid a potential hiatus between attorney control and deputy control, which could last for several months. That's the issue about whether it is wise to leave things as they are. It's a matter of assessing risk and making a judgment accordingly. No-one can say that things won't go pear shaped, but how likely is it at the moment compared to the cost and effort of changing the status quo.

The best thing to do is to organise finances so that they mostly run on autopilot, with perhaps your daughter having authorised access to a bank account so that essential bills continue to be paid if you are incapacitated. It is worth asking the banks what they can offer to include your daughter, if that's possible. Presumably if your mum has capacity she could authorise this, rather than you as attorney.

 

[FifiMo]

I seriously wouldn't worry about this. If the unfortunate thing happened and Deputyship had to be applied for then the Court of Protection have numerous options open to it. Your daughter, say, could apply for an interim emergency order for example. If your mum was in a care home perhaps by then, then the local authority can step in and make payments to the home until such time as the Deputyship is approved. If she is still at home, then companies such as utility providers are used to these things happening and they (and many other companies) wait it out in order to receive payments.

One thing that a lot of us have had to resort to is use of internet banking. If something happened to you then your daughter or your husband could continue to manage the finances via internet banking until Deputyship is sorted. Just tell them to keep away from the bank and don't go notifying them of things such as your demise until the Deputyship is approved. You would be amazed at how many people operate on this basis. Unfortunately these are the things we have to resort to when the system is not set up to resolve issues quickly.

Lots of options depending on circumstances at that time. So, please don't worry unnecessarily.

Fiona

 

[mrsapple]

Thank you all for taking the time to reply! I'll leave things as they are for now. I am a signatory on my mum's bank accounts and have online banking already, so husband would be able to access these accounts if necessary. Sorry if I seemed to be worrying unnecessarily - just trying to cover all bases I suppose, but I have to realise it's not always possible to do that. Things just seem to pile up from time to time. Thank you all again for your advise and support, it's much appreciated,