Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) -  Office of the Public Guardian (OPG)

Who can act as my Attorney? 
Anyone aged 18 and over who has mental capacity and who is not bankrupt when they sign the form. You should appoint someone you trust such as a relative, or a professional. (Most professional Attorneys will only act for LPA Property & Financial Affairs).

Who can make a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA)?
Anyone aged 18 years or over who has mental capacity at the time of making it (England and Wales).

When can my attorneys act for me? 
For a Health and Welfare LPA, your attorney can only act for you once you’ve lost the mental capacity to make your own decisions.  

For a Property and Financial Affairs LPA, with your permission as stated in the document, your attorney can step in and help you with decision making before you lose mental capacity. For this to happen, you will need to select this as an option when you make the LPA.

How you would like your Attorneys to act - You have three options.

Jointly
This option means that your Attorneys must make ALL decisions together. If one of your Attorneys disagrees, that decision cannot be made on your behalf.

You might choose this option if you want to be sure that your Attorneys are in agreement about every decision, but you should bear in mind that getting the agreement of all the Attorneys could take extra time and delay what otherwise would have been straightforward decisions.

It should be noted that, if one of the Attorneys is unable to act due to predeceasing the Donor, losing mental capacity, etc. the LPA will be rendered invalid. Any Replacement Attorney will take over from the remaining Attorneys and act as SOLE Attorney.

Jointly for some decisions and Jointly & Severally for others
This option means that your Attorneys can make some decisions independently, but for others they must all be in agreement.

You might choose this option if you want your Attorneys to be able to make day to day decisions such as paying care home fees independently but, be in agreement when making more significant decisions such as, selling your home.

Please note that if you choose this option and the OPG deem it to be unworkable, it could render the LPA invalid and be rejected at the OPG Registration process.

Jointly & Severally
This option means that your Attorneys can make all decisions either together or independently.

You might choose this option if, for example, one of your Attorneys is closely involved in your financial affairs and you trust them to make your decisions on their own, or one of your Attorneys is frequently unavailable (working abroad) or you simply want to ensure that your LPA continues to be workable if one of your Attorneys dies.

Guidance & Restrictions
You may also wish to give guidance to your Attorneys on how you want them to act, but this is not legally binding. 

Completing the guidance box gives the Donor the opportunity to provide broader information for their Attorneys to consider when making decisions on their behalf.

Completing the Restriction box is binding and allows the Donor to stipulate what practices and procedures they wish the Attorneys to follow, such as seeking professional financial advice before making any investments.

Who else needs to be involved in making an LPA?
People who need to be told - these are relatives or adults who know you well and who are given the opportunity to raise any concerns or objections about the LPA before registration.

Those that are not relatives and are independent of the Donor can also act as a Certificate Provider. You do not need to name any ‘people who need to be told’ but can have up to 5.

Your Attorney(s) or Replacement Attorney(s)
These cannot also act in the category of people who need to be told and also cannot act as a Certificate Provider.

Certificate Provider - You must have 1 Certificate Provider
They must have known you, the Donor, for at least 2 years or have the relevant professional skills to enable them to confirm that you understand the significance of your LPA, e.g. your GP. They will also need to certify that no undue pressure or fraud is involved in the making of the LPA.

Once you have made the decision to make your Lasting Power of Attorneys, we recommend that your LPAs are registered immediately with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG). An LPA can only be used after it is registered with the OPG.

Registering your Powers
Failure to register your LPA documents straight away may mean that the information it contains could be out of date. This may invalidate the LPA and the OPG could then later refuse to register the document. The charge for Registering an LPA is set by the OPG but can be reduced, or even waived entirely, depending on the Donor’s annual gross income.

Although Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs) can only be used once registered (subject to capacity for Health & Welfare and any restrictions on Property & Financial Affairs), there is also a strong case for having unregistered LPAs prepared in advance.

In this context, unregistered means the LPAs have been fully completed, checked, and signed correctly, and are ready to be submitted to the Office of the Public Guardian for registration if and when they are needed.

As part of our professional advice process, we recommend putting LPAs in place early. However, many people feel they are unnecessary at the time — often because they don’t see themselves as vulnerable, or believe LPAs are only relevant for the elderly or those already ill. As a result, they postpone taking action.

The problem is that when an LPA is needed, it may already be too late. A serious event such as a TIA, heart attack, or brain injury following an accident can result in a sudden loss of capacity. At that point, you are no longer able to give instructions or put an LPA in place.

Without a valid Power of Attorney (Enduring or Lasting Power of Attorney), your loved ones may be left with no option but to apply to the Court of Protection for a deputyship — a process that can be time-consuming, costly, and stressful.

To better understand why LPAs are so important, we invite you to watch our short educational video on Lasting Powers of Attorney, which explains the key points in a clear and accessible way.

For disclosure, a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) can be prepared online via GOV.UK, or you can contact the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) to request a paper pack or download the relevant forms. However, the forms are lengthy and can be confusing, so many people choose to use professional services such as South Coast Legal Services, who can provide tailored advice and guidance to ensure the LPA is set up in line with your individual requirements.