If something was to happen to you in the future, do you have somebody you could trust to look after your finances? This is a concern that many people have and so they are taking to putting a Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney in place.
This means that you can entrust your bank account, your bills, your benefits and your home to someone close to you. At Loveday Solicitors we have vast expertise in arranging Lasting Power of Attorney.
We can help you to put this together and can advise you on the sorts of things that you need to include. Talk to us today to find out why a Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney is so important, and how we can help you to create one.
What is a Property and Financial Affairs LPA?
A lasting power of attorney allows you to name someone who can make decisions on your behalf in the future if you need to. This is usually because you fear losing the mental capacity to make your own decisions later in life.
There are two important types of lasting power of attorney. Whilst a Health and Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney covers where you will live and how you will be cared for, a Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney deals with your finances. By putting a Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney in place.
You can help to plan for the future even if you are not in a position to make decisions later. You can outline your wishes to ensure that your attorney understands what you want to happen to your property, how your bills will be paid, and how your bank accounts will be managed. This allows you to stay in control of your finances throughout your entire life, irrespective of your mental condition.
By having a lasting power of attorney in place, you put yourself in the position to be able to make better decisions. You can take the time to think through all your options and decide exactly what you want to happen. This can give you and your family the Peace of Mind that is needed to know that your finances will always be taken care of with your best interests at heart.
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Responsibilities of a Property and Financial Affairs Attorney
A property and financial affairs attorney will make decisions about your finances on your behalf. This will not only cover your money, tax and bills, but also how your bank and building society accounts are managed. It can also cover property investments as well as your pensions and any benefits that you might receive.
You can set out what you would like your attorney to do. However, they must also take all practicable steps to help you make decisions on certain matters for yourself, if you have the capacity to do so. Even if they think that you may have made some unwise decisions when setting out your lasting power of attorney, they must adhere to these if it is established that you had sufficient mental capacity to make those decisions at the time.
A property and financial affairs attorney must take account of all the relevant circumstances when they make a decision and must give thought to what you would have wanted. They must give weight to your past and present wishes, beliefs and values, and must also take into account the views of anyone else you have named to be consulted on certain matters. However, a property and affairs attorney cannot make decisions on personal welfare. Making gifts to people, making a will, or consenting to either a marriage or a divorce.
In order for a Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney to be successful, it is important that your finances are kept separate and the thorough records are maintained. You must also ensure that the attorney you choose is someone you can trust implicitly to handle your affairs. This should be somebody who has a good understanding of finances but is also prepared to represent all of your wishes.
How to Set Up a Property and Financial Affairs LPA
When setting up a Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney, you need to choose who that attorney will be. It could be one person or a group who are required to work together jointly. Your chosen attorney must be over the age of 18, but they do not need to be a British citizen. Most importantly, your attorney needs to be somebody that you can trust. Once you have chosen who your attorney is going to be, you then need to think about what you are going to ask of them. It can be very important to get full and proper legal advice at this stage to make sure that all of your requests are written out clearly and to check that you have thought of all possible situations.
The legal professionals at Loveday Solicitors can then help you to put it together. All of the necessary forms in order to apply for a Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney. Once your Lasting Power of Attorney has been drafted, it must be signed by yourself, your attorneys, and witnesses.
At this stage, it must then be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before the attorneys are given the power to be able to act when necessary. This costs £82, although it can be less if you are in receipt of certain benefits. Once you have submitted your Lasting Power of Attorney, it can take as much as 20 weeks for it to be registered. Unlike a Health and Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney, the Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney can be used as soon as it has been registered as long as your permission is given.
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When Can an Attorney Act?
A property and financial affairs attorney is able to act as soon as the Lasting Power of Attorney has been registered, as long as you give your permission. Well then able to act immediately even if you still have mental capacity. This is often useful if you are travelling abroad or have been physically incapacitated. In your Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney you can state that your attorneys only have the power to act after you've lost capacity if you wish. It is important that you give this a great deal of thought and make sure that you specify in your lasting power of attorney when you wish attorneys to be able to act on your behalf.
Attorney has the power to act, they will be asked for proof of their position before they are able to access your bank accounts and other financial products. The attorney will then be able to spend money on gifts to your friends or family members and donations to charity. However, any other type of gift or to donations such as paying school fees, letting someone live in your property without paying market rent or providing interest-free loans will need to be applied for at the Court of Protection.
The attorney also has the right to buy and sell property on your behalf, but they will need to seek legal advice if the sale is below the market value, they have decided to buy the property for themselves, or they are giving it to someone. If you need to make a will. Then the attorney can apply for a statutory will, but they cannot put together a will themselves for you, nor can they change your will.
How Lovedays Solicitors Can Help
Lovedays Solicitors have a specialist team of lawyers who can advise you on how best to protect your interests. We can ensure that you have thought of everything when it comes to choosing who your attorney is going to be and what you want them to do. We can also ensure that you have specified when they will be able to act as your attorney.
We will start the process with a consultation where we find out a bit more about you and can outline what you should expect. We will give you some things to think about and ask you for certain pieces of information to help decide what your plans should be.
We can help to draft your Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney and submit your forms. By involving a legal professional, you can ensure that all of your forms are correct and there will be no delays in certifying the Lasting Power of Attorney. If required, we can always also provide guidance for your family as to how you want your affairs to be run.
With our ongoing support and expert advice, we can ensure that all of your future affairs are fully protected, giving you and your family the peace of mind you need.
Conclusion
A Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney can be one of the most important documents that you put together. This will help to ensure that all your financial affairs are handled in the way that you want, even when you've lost the mental capacity to make those decisions or cannot be physically present to see them through. Given the significance of this Lasting Power of Attorney, it is important that you consider everything and seek proper legal advice at every step of the way.
Our friendly and professional team at Lovedays Solicitors are here to support you and can ensure that the whole process is thorough and accurate. If you would like to know more about putting together a Property and Financial Affairs Lasting Power of Attorney, then speak to one of our dedicated professionals today.
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