Protect yourself and your family!!

20% off Lasting Powers of Attorney

Many people are leaving themselves and their family unprotected should they become mentally or physically unable to deal with their financial affairs or make decisions about their health and welfare

To help you get your affairs into order, we are giving a discount of 20% off all Lasting Powers of Attorneys during the month of April!!!

Protect yourself! Can you afford not to?

 ‘We don’t need LPA’s because we have joint accounts’

This is a common misunderstanding made by a lot of people.  If you have a joint account with another person and they are not mentally able to make their own decisions then, by law, the account has to be frozen and you will have difficult to access your own money nevermind the other persons!

‘I’m too young to make a LPA’

Although it would be helpful, nobody knows what the future holds.   A person is never too young to make a LPA. 

An example of this is...an unmarried couple in their 30’s had a car accident.  The girlfriend was in a coma for a long period of time.  The joint bank account was frozen, he was unable to arrange for the girlfriends wage to be paid into a different bank account and therefore he had problems with the mortgage and other outgoings.  Luckily he managed to cope until the girlfriend recovered thanks to a lot of financial help from his friends and family.

The boyfriends stress and worry was unnecessary and would not have happened if the couple had made a LPAs.

Lindsay - good luck with the promotion - let me know how you get on.  I TOTALLY agree with POA's - on a personal basis .. Both of my elderly parents have needed help in recent months and the POA's have been a great benefit at a difficult time. regards - Keith 

Thank you Keith.  Unfortunately a lot of people only realise the importance of these documents when it is too late so I am hoping this campaign can increase awareness and hopefully avoid unnecessary stress for families.

‘LPA’s are too expensive’

We can assure you that it is much more expensive not to have an LPA.  If you suddenly become unable to manage your own affairs, without an LPA, an application would have to be made to Court of Protection.  This can take up to 10 months and cost up to £1,000 (or even more) to process, during which time your finances could be seriously damaged.  Also the person authorised to handle your affairs on your behalf may not be who you would have chosen, and may even be a Court Official who can (and will) charge every time he/she acts for you.

‘The people I have put in my Will (executors) can deal with my finances’

There is confusion behind roles of people appointed in Wills (executors) and LPA’s (attorneys).  To clear this issue up...executor’s duties start on a person’s death.  Attorney’s duties finish on a person’s death.

Protect your business - Speak to me about a Business Lasting Power of Attorney

20% off Lasting Powers of Attorney until 15 May 2012

LPA's can be download for free from the Office of the Public Guardian

Yes they can, and Will forms can be bought be for 99p but that is just the actual form and not the expertise required to complete the form. 

I have seen many home made Wills that have been rejected at the Probate stage as it has not been completed correctly.  Similarly, I have recently dealt with a client who's mum had prepared her own Lasting Power of Attorney, lost mental capacity and when her attorney went to register the document, it was found to contain errors and was rejected.  This resulted in an application being made to the Office of Public Guardian resulting in supervision fees of £385 per year together with administration costs and a massive amount of paperwork for the deputy. 

Being blunt, I receive more fees from people completing these documents incorrectly than for completing the actual forms themself