Relative won't make POA

If she won’t grant POA - and if she has dementia it may be too late - which means an application to the Court of Protection for deputyship if she becomes incapable of managing her affairs. Her sister sounds too old to take this on. Ultimately if she needs to go into a home social services will be involved and there will be little or no choice of home - if necessary the local authority will apply for deputyship in order to pay her fees, which may involve selling her home.

You only mention possible onset of dementia so she might still be able to do POA if that’s what she wants.

You say she has no money worries so if she is self funding social services should still find her a good home that suits her needs. Even so, not everybody ends their days in a care home.

It may not be dementia, her neighbour might just be assuming that and she could have a water infection that causing her to be muddled and forgetful.

If it were me I would encourage her to get checked out before you expect her to make any decisions.

Dementia doesn’t necessarily mean a POA is out of the question, but the person must understand at the time what it means.
Unfortunately dementia can make people very suspicious of other people’s motives. My mother had put an old style P of A in place years before it was needed, but once we really needed to activate it, she thought we just wanted to steal her money.

My brother just had to get tough - a cheque for a substantial sum of money had already gone missing - and been cashed, by heaven knows whom.

AFAIK relatives can apply to the Court of Protection for the management of someone’s affairs, but I believe it’s more expensive and takes a lot longer to set up.

You might tell her, OP, that if she doesn’t allow her family to have P of A, then if it’s needed later for whatever reason, social services will take control. Some older people are very wary of having SS poking their noses into their affairs (as they see it) so that might just help.

This post has been deleted by GNHQ as it was posted in the wrong place.

Just to say that anyone thinking of doing POAs for themselves or others should be aware that they are taking ages! We sent in our applications mid-April and they won't be registered until mid-August!

The POA is quick to set up and is valid from the moment the person completes it if they have the mental capacity, but it has to be registered before it can be used and it’s the registration process which is taking time.

I still haven’t done mine, keep meaning to do it, but then put it off
Is it easy to do online ?

BBnan it’s not really appropriate to ask a totally different question in the middle of someone else thread
Why not start your own thread asking your question ?

We did mine online Shinamae and yes it did take quite a few months about 4 I think

Thanks for all replies. I was looking fo horror stories about people who did not set a POA up. It's an ongoing situation. Hoping to convince her to do it before too late.

Sorry, posted in wrong place - blond moment!

Well if you’re looking for horror stories, there are plenty of people stealing money from old people with dementia who have nobody to look after their finances. Just this week our local paper reported the jailing of two people who had done this in sleepy Norfolk. They had gained the people’s trust and taken a lot of money over a period. Entirely unconnected cases. It also happened to the mother of a client of mine years ago; the family had trusted the ‘caring’ person concerned.

Germanshepherdsmum

Well if you’re looking for horror stories, there are plenty of people stealing money from old people with dementia who have nobody to look after their finances. Just this week our local paper reported the jailing of two people who had done this in sleepy Norfolk. They had gained the people’s trust and taken a lot of money over a period. Entirely unconnected cases. It also happened to the mother of a client of mine years ago; the family had trusted the ‘caring’ person concerned.

GSM Did you see the one this week in Norfolk where a support worker stole £63,000 from a person living in a residential home who had lived there since he was 7 years old.
Absolutely disgusting and I think he got about 18 months.

Shinamae

I still haven’t done mine, keep meaning to do it, but then put it off
Is it easy to do online ?

Yes, but you do need to read the instructions carefully and follow them exactly - particularly re witnesses and dating it - or it will be rejected and you’ll have to start (and pay the fee) again.

Yes I did Primrose. A very lenient sentence I thought. Disgraceful crime, committed by a so-called carer.

I did PoAs online for myself and DH (now deceased).
I found it pretty straightforward, but tedious. Okay if you aren't time-poor.
If you get someone else e.g. solicitor's minion to do it, that's not cheap and you still have to do a certain amount of running around yourself .

Witzend

You might tell her, OP, that if she doesn’t allow her family to have P of A, then if it’s needed later for whatever reason, social services will take control. Some older people are very wary of having SS poking their noses into their affairs (as they see it) so that might just help.

Social Services don’t have the powers to take over someone’s affairs in these circumstances. If the person wont make an LPA and subsequently become unable to manage their own affairs, the persons’ family have to apply to the Office of the Public Guardian, to have the court of family protection appoint an independent deputy handle their affairs.

Romola

I did PoAs online for myself and DH (now deceased).
I found it pretty straightforward, but tedious. Okay if you aren't time-poor.
If you get someone else e.g. solicitor's minion to do it, that's not cheap and you still have to do a certain amount of running around yourself .

Ours were prepared by a solicitor. We did no ‘running around’ other than attending his office.
I wonder what a ‘solicitor’s minion’ is - I had qualified assistants.

If the family refuse to become involved and the local authority is providing any funding for a care home place then the local authority will apply for deputyship, and if necessary sell the house and other assets. I did quite a lot of that when working for a local authority. However the family appear immediately the person dies, wanting to know what’s left.

Witzend

Dementia doesn’t necessarily mean a POA is out of the question, but the person must understand at the time what it means.
Unfortunately dementia can make people very suspicious of other people’s motives. My mother had put an old style P of A in place years before it was needed, but once we really needed to activate it, she thought we just wanted to steal her money.

My brother just had to get tough - a cheque for a substantial sum of money had already gone missing - and been cashed, by heaven knows whom.

AFAIK relatives can apply to the Court of Protection for the management of someone’s affairs, but I believe it’s more expensive and takes a lot longer to set up.

I agree. It’s diminished or lost mental capacity, not the dementia itself that renders a person unable to agree to an LPA, and it’s a difficult area, because capacity is a legal term which can have far reaching consequences for the person for whom it’s in question. My own mum asked me to be her attorney after she was diagnosed with the onset of vascular dementia, and she was involved at every stage and understood what she was doing. Four years on, her capacity is diminished but she still has some understanding and lucid periods, so any decision I take as her attorney has to involve her as much as possible. I think a lot of people misunderstand LPA’s, and think it gives the attorney the power to take over completely, but in reality all decisions must be in the best interests of the donor, and must involve them as far as possible or reasonable.

I set up an Enduring POA many years ago. Is that likely to still be valid?

Yes.

Germanshepherdsmum

If the family refuse to become involved and the local authority is providing any funding for a care home place then the local authority will apply for deputyship, and if necessary sell the house and other assets. I did quite a lot of that when working for a local authority. However the family appear immediately the person dies, wanting to know what’s left.

Yes, sorry I meant to say that in the absence of family, social services can do the same. I was a bit concerned that that poster was giving the incorrect impression that social services would automatically take over in the absence of an LPA, which is not the case if there’s family involvement. I’ve also had the same experience as yourself. My late husband had LPA for an elderly aunt, as her own sons didn’t want to be involved. He arranged a care home when she could no longer care for herself and she died after a a very short time in care, during which time her own family never came near. When she died they wasted no time in establishing a claim to what was left. Disgusting.