What is a Lasting Power of Attorney?

The idea in one paragraph

You, the 'donor', appoint one or more trusted people, your 'attorneys', to make decisions on your behalf if you lose mental capacity. LPAs were created by the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and cover England & Wales (Scotland and Northern Ireland have different systems). An LPA must be made while you still have capacity, and it only takes legal effect once it has been registered with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG).

The two types

A Property & Financial Affairs LPA (form LP1F) covers money and property: paying bills, running bank accounts, claiming benefits, buying or selling your home. You choose whether it can be used as soon as it's registered, only ever with your consent while you have capacity, or only once capacity is lost.

A Health & Welfare LPA (form LP1H) covers personal decisions: your daily routine and care, medical treatment, where you live, and, only if you expressly grant it, decisions about life-sustaining treatment. Unlike the financial LPA, it can only ever be used when you lack capacity to make the particular decision yourself.

They're separate documents with separate registrations. Many people make both at once so that neither side of their life is left uncovered.

Who's involved

Beyond you and your attorneys, two roles matter. A certificate provider, someone who has known you personally for two years or more, or a relevant professional, signs to confirm you understand the document and nobody is pressuring you. And every signature must be properly witnessed by an independent adult. Both roles have strict eligibility rules, and mistakes with either are common causes of OPG rejection.

Why people make one now

Capacity can be lost gradually, through conditions like dementia, or suddenly, through a stroke or accident at any age. Without an LPA, nobody (including your spouse) has automatic authority to act for you; your family would usually need a Court of Protection deputyship, which typically takes months, costs considerably more, and puts a court, not you, in charge of who is appointed.

How an LPA becomes legally effective

First the forms are completed and checked. Then they're signed in wet ink, in a strict order: you first, then your certificate provider, then your attorneys, with each signature witnessed. Finally the LPA is posted to the OPG for registration with the £92 statutory fee per LPA (a 50% remission applies if the donor's gross annual income is under £12,000, and some means-tested benefits give full exemption). Registration typically takes 8–10 weeks when there are no errors.