Last year the Government seized over £3.2 billion of assets from the mentally impaired, and then charged them over £23 million in fees to access them!
There is only one way you can avoid this happening to you – put in place Lasting Powers of Attorney
LPA’s are a vital document for every adult, to enable you to appoint someone to manage your affairs should you become unable to manage them yourself due to a loss of ‘Mental Capacity’ – such as through Illness, Accident, Dementia or a Stroke
Without this document, your relatives must apply to the Government’s Court of Protection and the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) who investigate the background of your loved ones to decide if they are ‘fit to run your affairs’ and be appointed their ‘Deputy’ – making them complete a 50-page form giving huge amounts of personal information about themselves, their family, their own finances and their relationship with you – the person they wish to care for
If they are appointed as Deputies – and it is by no means guaranteed they will be, even if they are your spouse, partner or children, they might appoint a complete stranger – the OPG maintains control of your finances, and the Deputies continuously have to obtain their authorisation to pay expenses on your behalf, such as your general household bills. And for every decision the OPG makes, they charge a Fee.
These fees can run into thousands of pounds a year, payable on an ongoing basis until you either recover, or die.
There are currently over 55,000 people in the UK whose lives and assets are being ‘managed’ by the OPG, they are considered unable to manage their own affairs – and did not appoint Attorneys to do it for them
Essentially the OPG’s role is to protect you from the ones you love and who love you, in order to protect itself from any accusations of wrong-doing should you ever ‘recover’
It is a cruel, intrusive, costly, time consuming, archaic, bureaucratic and legal nightmare, and in its treatment of Deputies it does not distinguish between a close family member or a virtual stranger
Don’t let your loved ones become trapped in the bureaucratic nightmare – Contact Us to find out how we can help you put Lasting Powers of Attorney in place to protect your family in the event you are unable to.