Why most people set up Power of Attorney too late – and what that actually costs

LPAs often get discussed and acknowledged as something important. And are then kicked into the long grass. It doesn’t get rejected – most people, when it is put to them, will say they should have one, but they put it off. Until after Christmas or until things settle down, for example. They wait for a better moment that never quite arrives. And then, in many cases, the question starts getting asked again.

A diagnosis has changed everything. A fall has led to a hospital stay and a conversation about what comes next. The moment has arrived to set up an LPA. And then it becomes apparent how terrible a moment it is to set up an LPA.

Here’s what most people don’t know until they need to know it: You can only set up an LPA when you have the mental ability to do so. If you’ve lost the ability or there’s doubt over it, you’re out of luck with an LPA. For advice on Power of Attorney Hertfordshire, contact https://beesandco.com/our-services/power-of-attorney/hertfordshire

What then opens up is the Court of Protection deputyship process. This achieves a similar outcome, but it’s a longer and more expensive route, which is administratively more demanding and much more stressful for everyone involved.

A family manages a health crisis and sets up a deputyship, while simultaneously dealing with an unfamiliar legal process under time pressure, without the document that would have made everything so much easier.