Many people have now taken the precaution in the case of them potentially losing mental capacity in the future, by appointing people they trust as attorneys under Lasting Powers of Attorney for both Property and Financial Affairs and Health and Welfare (LPAs) and registering these at the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG). In 2015 – 2016 the numbers of people who registered their LPAs increased by more than a quarter to 726,000.
If you have already registered your LPAs and something changes in your circumstances such that you want to change or revoke it, here’s how:
Firstly, you will have to have mental capacity to these make these decisions, to be able to either change or revoke your LPAs.
Changing Your LPA
If you want to remove an attorney and revoke the authority given to that attorney by the LPA – this can be done by the preparation of a Partial Deed of Revocation which is drafted in specific wording with the relevant information from your LPA. The deed will need to be signed by you as the Donor and witnessed.
It is then forwarded to the OPG for their record and you should then inform the attorney you have cancelled their authority.
If you would like to add another attorney to your LPA, you will have to cancel your LPA and make a new one.
Revoking Your LPA
You can cancel your LPA, as long as you have mental capacity to make that decision. Again, a specifically worded Deed of Revocation should be prepared, this document needs to be in specific wording and signed by yourself as Donor in front of a witness who also should add their signature and details to the document.
This then is actioned by forwarding the original LPA and a Deed of Revocation to the OPG.
There are other ways your LPA can come to an end as well, which include if your attorney is your spouse or civil partner and you divorce or dissolve your civil partnership.
If you do not have attorneys in place to look after your decisions when you can no longer do so, it is important that you do this so you are prepared for the unknown future. This ensures that you choose people (while you have the mental capacity to do so) whom you trust implicitly to act in your best interests, people you know well, to manage your Property and Financial Affairs and who know your wishes such that they can speak for you if there is ever a time you cannot do so for yourself. Also, it ensures you are making things as easy as you can for those who will assume responsibility for you.
To ensure you are aware of the effect, nature, and purpose of these documents you should take legal advice. At Fisher Jones Greenwood we are specialist in providing this advice and prepare both these Deeds as well as preparing and registering your LPAs for a fixed fee. Please call us on 01206 700113 or email [email protected]