What types of Lasting Power of Attorney are there?

There are two types of LPA which can be made, and the Donor can choose to make either one or both types. There must be an individual LPA made for each person. 

This can be used while someone still has mental capacity, or you can state in your LPA application that you only want it to come into force if you lose capacity. 

 

An attorney (the person who makes decisions for you) can generally make decisions on things such as: 

 

You can restrict the types of decision your attorney can make, or let them make all financial decisions on your behalf. 

This covers decisions about healthcare as well as personal welfare, and can only be used if you lose mental capacity. 

 

An attorney can generally make decisions about things such as: 

You can also give special permission for your attorney to make decisions about life-saving treatment. 

 

The LPA must be signed by a certificate provider, who confirms that you understand it and haven’t been put under any pressure to sign it. They must be someone you have known for 2 years or more, or a professional person, such as a doctor, social worker or solicitor. They must be over 18 years old, and be unrelated to the Donor or any of the Attorneys. 

 

If there is any doubt about a person’s capacity, a medical report by a qualified medical professional, such as a GP, may be required. 

 

 

The Donor must appoint at least one Attorney who they wish to make decisions on their behalf. The Attorney’s details must be included in the LPA, including their full name, address and date of birth. 

 

The Donor can appoint more than one Attorney, and they can also appoint replacement Attorneys, who can act if the initial Attorney or Attorneys are unable to. 

 

If there is more than one Attorney, the Donor must decide whether to appoint them jointly, severally or jointly and severally. 

 

Jointly means that the Attorneys must all make decisions together. This can be an issue if one of the Attorneys is unable to act (such as for medical reasons or if they die), as this can render the LPA unusable. 

 

Severally means that the Attorneys make all decisions separately. 

 

The final option is jointly and severally, which means that the Attorneys can make decisions together or separately, and this option means that if someone is unable to act, the LPA can still be used. 

Local Solicitors for Wills, MG Legal’s, fees for drafting LPAs are £200.00 plus VAT for one type of LPA, or £375.00 plus VAT if the Donor wishes to make both types of LPA. 

 

There is a registration fee of £82.00 per document, unless the Donor qualifies for a fee remission or exemption. This is usually assessed based on financial circumstances. 

 

To arrange an appointment to make Lasting Powers of Attorney with our team of local solicitors for Wills, contact our team by emails at wills@mglegal.co.uk, or contact your local office, here.