Lasting Power of Attorney – take control and choose the attorney you trust

People are living longer so it is vitally important we plan – not just for our own care, but we should also help our parents plan as well. There may come a time where we can no longer make vital decisions about our future finances and our care. Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPA) are one way to plan ahead. They enable you to choose and give someone you trust the power to act on your behalf if there comes a time when you can no longer make decisions for yourself due to an accident or poor health. The person/people you appoint to manage things on your behalf are known as your attorney.

There are two different types of LPA: property and affairs, and health and welfare. You can choose to make both types, or just one. You can have the same attorney for both, or you can appoint different attorneys.

The first type of LPA covers decisions about money and property. If there comes a time when you can no longer manage your finances, the attorney will do this for you. This could include paying bills, collecting benefits, or selling your house.

A health and welfare LPA allows the attorney to make decisions on your behalf about your future day-to-day care if you are no longer able to care for yourself, including, if you wish, the power to accept or refuse life-sustaining treatment on your behalf.

You decide what powers the attorney can have.

President of the Law Society Jonathan Smithers said: “Once you have an idea of what you – or perhaps your parents or other older relatives – want to do, talk to a solicitor about getting a lasting power of attorney drawn up and registered.”

Making an LPA while you have the mental and physical ability to make it puts you in control of appointing those you trust as your attorney. For more information on Wills, Trusts, Probate or Lasting Power of Attorney please contact Dagmara on dkulcykowska@geoffreyleaver.com or call 01908 689341.