Lasting Power of Attorney

A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is created under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and registered with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG). There are two types: Property and Financial Affairs LPA (can be used while the donor has capacity, if they choose) and Health and Welfare LPA (can only be used once the donor lacks capacity to make the relevant decision). An LPA must be signed by the donor, a certificate provider (who confirms the donor understands and is not under pressure), and the attorney(s), then registered with the OPG (fee: £82 per LPA, reduced or waived if the donor receives means-tested benefits). Registration typically takes 8–12 weeks. An LPA cannot be used before it is registered.

What it means in practice. Making an LPA is an act of capacity, so it can only be done while the donor still understands what they are giving away and to whom. That is why it should be treated as ordinary forward planning rather than a crisis response. The donor chooses whether attorneys must act jointly, meaning every decision needs all of them, or jointly and severally, meaning any one of them can act alone. Joint appointment sounds safer but is brittle: if one attorney dies or loses capacity, a jointly appointed LPA can fail entirely, which is why naming replacement attorneys matters.

A worked example. Pat makes both types of LPA at 68 while entirely well. She appoints her two children jointly and severally, with her brother as replacement, and includes a preference that she would like to remain at home for as long as it is safe. Five years later she is diagnosed with dementia. Her children can immediately use the property and financial affairs LPA to manage her bank accounts and pay her care fees, and once she loses capacity to make care decisions they can use the health and welfare LPA to be involved in decisions about her treatment and where she lives. No court application is needed at any point.

Common pitfalls. Waiting is the fatal one: once capacity is lost an LPA cannot be made, and the family must apply to the Court of Protection for a deputyship, which is slower, considerably more expensive, and supervised annually. Banks sometimes refuse to accept an LPA they have not seen registered, so register it as soon as it is signed rather than leaving it in a drawer. And an ordinary power of attorney is not a substitute — it stops working at exactly the moment it is needed.

How it relates to other terms. LPAs are made under the Mental Capacity Act 2005, whose principles — including the presumption of capacity and the right to make unwise decisions — govern how attorneys must act. Where no LPA exists, the fallback is the Court of Protection and a deputy, and decisions must be taken as a best interests decision. Attorneys are also a common route through which financial abuse is reported under safeguarding adults.

What to do next. Read our Lasting Power of Attorney guide and make both types together while you have capacity, then register them straight away. Consider recording treatment wishes using advance decisions. If capacity has already been lost, read the Court of Protection guide for the deputyship route.