Arch Financial Planning Limited MoneyTalk
September 2007
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Arch Financial Planning Limited MoneyTalk |
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September 2007 |
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Last few days for Enduring Power of Attorney by Arthur Childs, Chartered Financial Planner If you are over the age of 60, or you have parents who are over the age of 60, you should read this now. In fact, that is, of course, the majority of people to whom this email is addressed. On 1st October 2007, it will no longer be possible to set up an Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA). Instead we will all have to use a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) to achieve the same end. Without losing you in the detail, you need to know that a Lasting Power of Attorney is likely to be very much more expensive to set up and register than an Enduring Power of Attorney. Our message, is therefore simple; if you are aged over 60 you might want to take this opportunity to set up an Enduring Power of Attorney now. It costs nothing and you can keep it with your important papers until such time as it is needed, if at all. If you have parents who are over the age of 60 then you might want to show this email to them. If you go to our website you will find a link under the heading 'Public Guardianship Office' to a straightforward form you can download without cost (please note that we are not referring to the Google adds) and use to set up an Enduring Power of Attorney, plus a link under the same section to a booklet which should answer your questions. What is an Enduring Power of Attorney? An Enduring Power of Attorney is a special form of power of attorney in that it remains valid after somebody has become mentally incapable of managing their own affairs, whereas an ordinary power of attorney would cease at that point. The important issue here is that an Enduring Power of Attorney can only be set up when you are in sound mind and still capable of making decisions about the future. No matter how young and fit you feel now, if you are aged, say, 60 or over, it would be prudent for you to set up an Enduring Power of Attorney as this enables you to select one or more people (in most cases your children) to act for you should you become mentally incapable at some future date. Establishing an Enduring Power of Attorney gives you the opportunity to have a say about your future and it also makes it easier for your family, or others, to act on your behalf in the future should this become necessary. You should not just think that it is about losing your mental capacity when you are very old. You might be involved in an accident, pick up a virus in hospital, or find that you are suffering from a disease that affects your capacity to make decisions. The message is simple. It will cost you nothing to complete an Enduring Power of Attorney before 1 October 2007, but in the event that it is needed at some point in the future, your family could be very glad that you did. For further information and access to all you need to do this, please visit our website at www.arch-fp.co.uk/enduring_power_of_attorney.php Please note that this information does not constitute personal advice and should not be treated as a substitute for specific advice based on your circumstances. If, having read the information on our website, you are in any doubt as to whether using an Enduring Power of Attorney is suitable for you, then you should discuss the matter with a solicitor. The best source of information on an Enduring Power of Attorney is the Guide which you can obtain from the Public Guardianship Office and to which you will find a link on our website. If there are questions which this cannot answer you should contact a solicitor. If you have financial planning questions please ask your usual Arch adviser, telephone 0845 3700 661 or email enquiries@arch-fp.co.uk. |
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