Who will control your finances and property if you become incapable of doing so?
If you become mentally incapable of controlling your own affairs then your next of kin must apply to the Court of Protection (now the Public Guardianship Office) for authority to take over your affairs. The application to the Court of Protection is a lengthy and costly legal procedure.
The purpose of an Enduring Power of Attorney is to enable you to decide who will deal with your affairs if you become mentally incapable. This also avoids the complex procedure to the Court of Protection and hence reduces costs and expenses.
If a person has made an ordinary Power of Attorney, it loses its validity when the person creating it loses the mental capacity to manage his or her own affairs.
If you would like more details of an Enduring Power of Attorney do not hesitate to ask us for more information. In addition, as from March 2007 it will be possible to make a new form of Enduring Power of Attorney called a Lasting Power of Attorney which will also incorporate other decisions concerning, for example, medical treatment, etc.