Do you really need an LPA?

17th Sep 2018

All too often, a family member or loved one sadly loses their ability to manage their affairs with no plan in place for their finances, property, health or welfare to be dealt with on their behalf. The loss of mental capacity at any stage in life, whether through illness; disease; brain injury; side effects of medication; a progressive learning disorder; mental health problems; drug/alcohol misuse; or the natural ageing process, can have a huge impact on all involved.

20% REDUCTION ON LASTING POWER OF ATTORNEY FEES

Whilst we are all living longer, sadly this doesn’t necessarily mean in good health. According to the Alzheimer’s Society an additional 225,000 people in the UK will develop dementia each year, in addition to the 850,000 who are currently living with the illness. However, it is not just an age dependent issue – some 40,000 people under the age of 65 have dementia in the UK. Putting it bluntly, one person in the UK develops dementia every 3 minutes.

The experiences we have had with our clients together with the increasing amount people we see who are living with Dementia has meant we joined the Norwich City Dementia Action Alliance.

A Lasting Power of Attorney is something that we always highlight to a client when discussing their Will as we believe it is an important part of their overall planning.

There are two types of LPAs; one to deal with property and finance and one that deals with health and welfare decisions.

It’s easy to understand the need for the finance one and dismiss the Health and Welfare LPA. However, we are starting to see more and more anecdotal evidence of the need for both. As care agencies, local authorities etc. become aware of LPAs they are more insistent of an LPA being present before allowing family members to be involved in care decisions.

An LPA should be seen as an insurance policy. You really hope that you won’t ever need it but if you do, you will be delighted that you have one in place!

As a Dementia friendly organisation we believe strongly in the benefits that an LPA brings so we are offering a 20% reduction on our standard fees until the 21st December 2018.

If you are interested in discussing how an LPA can help you and your family we can be contacted at wills@rogers-norton.co.uk or on 01603 675616.