The LPA is signed and sorted, but here’s what you need to know about storing changing, or cancelling it.
Storing a Lasting Power of Attorney document
Once you have received your Lasting Power of Attorney back from the Office of the Public Guardian, you will need to ensure it is stored safely and correctly.
If you need to use the LPA to start making decisions on behalf of someone with dementia, you will need to provide them with either the original (which isn’t recommended) or a copy that has been signed and certified as an exact copy. The donor can sign and certify themselves so long as they have mental capacity. If they don’t, a solicitor will need to do this. You can request official copies of the LPA from the Office of the Public Guardian for £35.
We recommend that you keep both the original and any copies somewhere that is safe and accessible for the attorneys. While a Health and Welfare LPA may not have to be used too often, a Finance and Property LPA may be requested at regular intervals when dealing in this area, so it’s a good idea to have several copies ready in case the institution fails to return the original.
Amending a LPA document
Once you have sent off a complete LPA form to the Office of the Public Guardian, you cannot make any amendments. It’s why it is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT that you check through the form before you send it off.
If there are large amendments that need to be made, you’ll be better off downloading a completely fresh copy of the forms and starting again. For very small amendments (such as spelling mistakes) you can cross through them, write the correct working and then you AND the witness needs to initial them.
If you need to change the LPA after it has been registered, you will need to complete a brand new form and pay the cost of a registration fee, so this is best avoided.
Ending a Lasting Power of Attorney document
You can cancel a LPA if you’re the donor at any point, so long as you have mental capacity. If the LPA is registered, you will need to write a Deed of Revocation, which essentially revokes the original agreement. Like the original LPA, it will need to be signed, dated and witnessed, and then sent off to the Office of the Public Guardian. You should also alert all of your named attorneys that you are cancelling the LPA.
A Lasting Power of Attorney may also end if…
– You die. Your affairs will be looked after by your executors or personal representatives from that point, not your attorney.
– An attorney dies
– Your attorney loses mental capacity
– An attorney in a Finance and Property LPA becomes bankrupt or subject to a Debt Relief Order
The LPA will continue if you have replacement attorneys or you have given the attorneys the power to act severally or jointly and severally.
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