Mums POA

[ishard]

I posted a while back about taking my Mother to her solicitor to complete the POA forms and that I wasn’t sure if she had done this. Her bank recommended we get this so that I can continue to handle Mums investments for her.

Well she has, I caught a glimpse of them yesterday after Mum mentioned a letter she had received from the solicitor to “please come in to sign them.” She had studiously ignored or forgotten about the 3 previous letters!

Mum won’t let me actually read the documents so I’m going to have to sneak a peek if I can get my son to take her down the garden.
I am worried that Mum may have put her brothers as attorneys but being as they are 87 and 80 (Mum is 73) and both live a long way away and have dementia this would obviously not be suitable.
If she has put her brothers then I will download a new set of papers from the internet and swap them.

I have persuaded Mum to see her solicitor next Thursday and hopefully she will sign the POA and it would be best if these were now registered as she does nothing either financially or health wise for herself. I do it all being her only immediate family.
Oh and BTW I asked on the phone if I can keep a copy of this POA (unregistered) to show the bank and was told I couldnt. Is this right?

After that explanation the real reasons I posted is;
1 To know who pays for it to be registered?
2 What is expected of me as an attorney?

 

[christine_batch]

Dear ishard,
If you telephone Alzheimer's Head Office and ask for the Legal Department they are very helpful.
Good luck
Christine

 

[gigi]

Hello Ishard,

I've just finished sorting out my husband's POA and am waiting to hear that it has been registered..the solicitor sent the registration forms away a few weeks ago..
But my husband signed the POA forms before new legislation came out last year ..therefore my info may not be accurate.

I never had the unregistered POA in my possession..it was held at the solicitor's-never crossed my mind to get hold of it-am not sure that it would have any sway with banks etc. anyway.

As far as I am aware the person applying for the registration will pay for it..but our case is different as we are husband and wife.

As an attorney you are expected to act in the best interests of the person you are seeking POA for..as I understand it if you are dealing with finances etc.
It really is best to check with the solicitor..

There is a fact sheet on the AS website-would love to give you the link but mu computer skills are limited. If you go onto the AS website..look for fact sheets and go through them there is one all about this..

Hope this helps a bit..

Love Gigi xx

 

[CraigC]

Hi Ishard/Gigi,

Here is the factsheet
http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/factsheet/472

And here is a link to the Guardianship Office Site and some really useful documents:

http://www.publicguardian.gov.uk/forms/guidance_booklets.htm

You may want to check out the guide:
LPA105 - Lasting Powers of Attorney - A guide for people taking on the role of property and affairs Attorney under a Lasting Power of Attorney (PDF 0.18MB)

This lets you know the powers and what you are taking on.

As far as your specfic questions go, I'm pretty sure anyone can pay for the initial set up and then the attorney will need to pay for the registration, that is how it worked for the EPA. Your responsibilities as an attorney are outlined in the above documents but I can't comment as they may be different from and EPA. The LPA took over from the EPA last year.

I assume you are in the process of setting up the LPA rather than trying to register it?

Kind Regards
Craig

 

[jenniferpa]

When you say "asked on the phone" - who exactly?

I believe that while the old "EPA" could be used unregistered, the new LPA needs to be registered to function.

The registration fee is usually paid by the donor (or more accurately, paid by the attorney and then reclaimed from the donor)

Edited to add = yes I've checked. The LPA is not functional at all until it is registered, so there would be no point in having a copy. However, with LPA they suggest registering it sooner rather than later (even if there's no issue with capacity) because then it can start to be used as required.

 

[Margarita]

Oh and BTW I asked on the phone if I can keep a copy of this POA (unregistered) to show the bank and was told I couldnt. Is this right?

After that explanation the real reasons I posted is;
1 To know who pays for it to be registered?
2 What is expected of me as an attorney?
Reply With Quote

I keep a cope of the EPOA and solicitor keep the Original .

who told you that you could not have a cope to show bank the solicitor? does sound wrong , but them may be solicitor is saying no to you because your not on the POA ? ( I may be wrong but it was just a thought ) as you did say ....

Mum won’t let me actually read the documents so I’m going to have to sneak a peek if I can get my son to take her down the garden.
I am worried that Mum may have put her brothers as attorneys but being as they are 87 and 80 (Mum is 73) and both live a long way away and have dementia this would obviously not be suitable.
If she has put her brothers then I will download a new set of papers from the internet and swap them.

1 out of your mother money , as if you have POE you take it out of her money .

 

[sue38]

Hi Ishard,

I don't know if you've had the chance to read the factsheets that Craig posted, but you should be aware that since October the POA has changed. You can no longer do an Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) as this has been replaced by the Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA). [EPA's executed before October are unaffected]

You can still download the forms from the internet, but for the LPA you need a certificate signed by a 'competent person' that the person signing the LPA understood the document they were signing. A solicitor (as well as health professionals and others) can sign the certificate.

One of the major differences is that whereas you only had to register an EPA when the person had lost mental capacity (up until then you could and still can use an unregistered EPA) with an LPA you cannot use it all until it has been registered. You can register an LPA at any time even if the person has not lost mental capacity. In fact the person who has signed the LPA can register it.

Hope this helps and is not too technical (i.e. hope you are still awake at the end of this!)

 

[ishard]

Thank you for all your replies and the confusion was my fault, it is a LPA.
This hopefully is going to be set up and sent off to be registered at the same time because Mum doesnt do anything much for herself anymore.

Thanks Craig for those links they did help and I going to be doing very little different yet than I already do for Mum.

The only thing that will change is when Mum wants some money from the bank I will get it out of the bank on my own (previously I took Mum down to the bank and she signed although I could have signed instead as I have access to the account) and keep an account of it.

Later as the AD prgresses it will be much more difficult I presume.

Thanks again

Jackie

 

[Clive]

Hi Ishard

Just to add my experience with the old EPA, but I presume it will be similar with the new Lasting Power of Attorney.

I asked the solicitor for a “Certified Copy”. This is just a photocopy of the registered Power of Attorney that the solicitor has Stamped and signed on every page.

Never let the original out of your site as it can get lost (especially if sent in the post !!).
I always used the Certified Copy, and I did manage to lose one and have one torn.

Best Wishes

Clive