A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) allows you to appoint people you trust to make decisions on your behalf if you become unable to do so. There are two: one for Health and Welfare, and one for Property and Financial affairs.
Health and Welfare
A Health and Welfare LPA lets your chosen attorney decide on matters such as care, medical treatment and daily life, including whether to accept or refuse life-sustaining treatment. It only takes effect once you have lost the capacity to make those decisions yourself.
Property and Finance
A Property and Finance LPA allows decisions on selling your home, managing investments, paying bills and collecting benefits. It can be used with your consent while you still have capacity, helpful for clients who prefer someone they trust to handle day-to-day matters.
Without one
Without an LPA, loved ones will be unable to make crucial decisions on your behalf without applying to the Court of Protection for Deputyship, a long and difficult process, even for something as ordinary as accessing a joint bank account.
The only right time
An LPA can only be put in place while you still have capacity to make one. Like a Will, it is a document you arrange early and quietly set aside until it is needed.