The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG), the Government body that deals with registration of Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs), has recently announced that it will be possible to complete LPAs and pay LPA registration fees online by December 2012. Other measures announced by the OPG include improving the understanding of attorney and deputy roles amongst financial institutions. These are welcome developments.
Online facility
LPAs are documents that individuals (donors) put in place to appoint someone (an attorney) to deal with their property and financial affairs and/or make decisions about their health and welfare should they lose capacity to make those decisions themselves in the future. They are very useful documents to have in place but can only be used once registered with the OPG. They were introduced in 2007 when they replaced the old form of Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA). However, since then concerns over the efficiency of the registration process have been raised. In particular, errors are often made by those completing LPAs (many argue that this is because the documents are too lengthy and confusing) resulting in some LPAs being returned by the OPG as invalid. Others are discouraged from making LPAs because they perceive the process to be too complicated.
According to the OPG's 2012/13 Business Plan, by the end of 2012 registration efficiency will be improved by donors being able to complete LPAs online using interactive software with built-in error checking. This is the proposed first step towards the OPG's ultimate aim of having a fully online system where LPA registration can also be completed online. A timetable for achieving this has not yet been announced as the OPG first needs to deal with concerns over security and legislative changes to allow for this system.
Scotland's Public Guardian has already launched an online power of attorney registration system and currently gives applicants the choice to receive their registration certificate and accompanying documents online or by post. The OPG's proposals are a welcome step in a similar direction, helping to make to process easier and more efficient and ultimately encourage more people to put LPAs in place.
Awareness amongst banks
In addition to the above, the OPG has announced its plans to work with financial institutions to improve awareness and understanding within the banking and finance sector of the rights and responsibilities of attorneys and deputies (individuals appointed by the Court of Protection to deal with an incapacitated person's financial affairs where no LPA has been made) by September 2012.
This is a welcome move that follows concerns raised by the Law Society with the British Bankers Association and the OPG about the lack of understanding amongst banks in this area - a longstanding source of frustration for practitioners and attorneys alike. In numerous cases banks have taken many months to recognise a power of attorney lodged with them during which time the donor's bank account(s) cannot be accessed to provide for the incapacitated donor's, often urgent, needs. In these cases, attorneys are unable to discuss the donor's account with anyone in branch or on the telephone as they are not the named account holder and are often passed from department to department within banks. There is lack of consistency in approach to dealing with LPAs and EPAs. We will be following the introduction of this much needed measure to combat these difficulties with interest.
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