Lasting power of attorney: the complete guide
A will handles what happens after you die. A lasting power of attorney handles what happens if you are alive but cannot make decisions. Of the two, the LPA is the one families most often wish they had sorted.
The short answer
- An LPA lets you choose who makes decisions for you if you lose mental capacity. There are two types — property and financial affairs, and health and welfare — and most people should have both.
- Each LPA costs £82 to register with the Office of the Public Guardian. Two people wanting both types is four LPAs.
- You must make an LPA while you still have capacity. Once capacity is gone it is too late, and your family has to apply to the Court of Protection for a deputyship — slower, far more expensive, and supervised for life.
- Being next of kin, or a spouse, gives you no automatic right to manage someone else's money. Banks will freeze accounts.
- An LPA is not all-or-nothing: you can restrict what your attorneys may do, and the health and welfare LPA only ever comes into force once you lack capacity.
What's on this page
What is a lasting power of attorney?#
An LPA is a legal document in which you (the donor) appoint one or more people (your attorneys) to make decisions on your behalf if you become unable to make them yourself. It is registered with the Office of the Public Guardian, a government body, before it can be used.
Losing capacity is not only a dementia question. A stroke, a serious head injury, a bad reaction to medication or a period of severe mental illness can all do it, at any age.
The two types, and why you probably want both#
Property and financial affairs#
Covers money and property: paying bills, running bank accounts, dealing with pensions and benefits, managing investments, and selling a home if it comes to that. Uniquely, this one can be used while you still have capacity, if you consent — useful if you are physically unwell or abroad. Full guide.
Health and welfare#
Covers medical treatment, care arrangements, where you live and day-to-day matters like diet and daily routine. It only ever comes into force once you lack capacity. You choose separately whether your attorneys may give or refuse consent to life-sustaining treatment. Full guide.
"I'm his wife, the bank will let me deal with it." No. Being a spouse, a civil partner or next of kin gives you no legal authority over someone else's finances. Sole accounts get frozen, direct debits fail, and a house in one name cannot be sold. This is where families discover the problem — usually at the worst possible moment.
What it costs#
The Office of the Public Guardian charges £82 to register each LPA. Applying yourself online or on paper is otherwise free. A solicitor will typically charge a few hundred pounds per LPA on top for drafting and handling it.
Fee reductions and exemptions are available: broadly, a 50% reduction if your gross annual income is under £12,000, and full exemption if you receive certain means-tested benefits.
Compared with the alternative#
If you lose capacity without an LPA, your family must apply to the Court of Protection to be appointed as your deputy. That means a court application fee, an assessment of capacity, an annual supervision fee, a security bond, and typically several months of waiting before anyone can pay your bills. Total first-year cost commonly runs into four figures, and the supervision continues every year afterwards.
Registering two LPAs for £82 each, in advance, is one of the best-value pieces of admin in British life. Full cost breakdown.
Who should you appoint?#
- Someone you trust with money, not just someone you love. Those are different tests.
- Consider appointing two or more attorneys, and name replacements. Attorneys can act "jointly and severally" (any of them can act alone — practical) or "jointly" (all must agree on everything — safer but brittle if one dies or falls out).
- Different people can take different roles: your accountant-minded daughter on finances, your nurse son on health.
- Your attorney must be 18 or over and, for the property and financial LPA, not bankrupt or subject to a debt relief order.
How to set one up#
- Decide the type(s) and who your attorneys and replacements will be.
- Complete the forms, online via GOV.UK or on paper. The service walks you through it in plain language.
- Choose a certificate provider — someone who confirms you understand the LPA and are not under pressure. Either someone who has known you personally for at least two years, or a professional such as a GP or solicitor. They cannot be a family member or one of your attorneys.
- Sign in the right order. You sign, then the certificate provider, then your attorneys. Signing out of order is the single most common reason an LPA is rejected.
- Register it with the Office of the Public Guardian and pay the £82 fee. Registration takes several weeks.
Step-by-step instructions, with the mistakes to avoid.
An LPA cannot be used until it is registered, and registration takes weeks. Do not make one and leave it unregistered "until it's needed" — if capacity is lost in the meantime you may be stuck with the Court of Protection route anyway.
What your attorneys can and cannot do#
Attorneys act under the Mental Capacity Act 2005, and the duties are real. They must:
- act in your best interests, not their own;
- help you make your own decisions for as long as you can — capacity is decision-specific, and someone unable to manage investments may still be perfectly able to choose what to wear or eat;
- keep your money entirely separate from theirs;
- keep records of what they spend on your behalf;
- follow any instructions written into the LPA, and take account of your stated preferences.
They cannot make or change your will, and they cannot make large gifts. Gifting is limited to reasonable amounts on customary occasions — birthdays, weddings, religious festivals — to people connected with you or charities you already supported. Anything beyond that needs Court of Protection approval, and attorneys who help themselves are investigated by the Office of the Public Guardian and prosecuted.
Common mistakes#
- Making only the financial LPA. It is no help at all in a hospital corridor.
- Not naming replacement attorneys. If your sole attorney dies or loses capacity themselves, the LPA fails and your family is back at the Court of Protection.
- Appointing attorneys "jointly" without thinking it through. If all must agree on everything, the death or incapacity of one can bring the whole LPA down.
- Writing restrictive instructions. Well-meant conditions like "only to be used when two doctors confirm I lack capacity" sound prudent but can make the LPA slow or unusable in practice.
- Signing in the wrong order. You, then the certificate provider, then the attorneys. This is the single most common reason applications are rejected.
- Leaving it registered but unmentioned. Lodge a copy with your bank and GP surgery in advance, so nobody has to explain themselves in a crisis.
How this fits with your will#
They cover opposite halves of the same problem, and neither substitutes for the other.
| Lasting power of attorney | Will | |
|---|---|---|
| When it applies | While you are alive but lack capacity | After you die |
| Who acts | Your attorneys | Your executors |
| Covers health decisions | Yes (health & welfare LPA) | No |
| Cost | £82 registration per LPA | £150–£400 typical |
| Stops working when | You die | Never — it starts then |
Your attorneys' authority ends the moment you die. At that point your executors take over, under your will.
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Frequently asked questions
Can I make an LPA for someone who already has dementia?
Only if they still have the mental capacity to understand what they are doing at the time they make it. Capacity is decision-specific and can fluctuate, so an early-stage diagnosis does not automatically rule it out — but it makes it urgent, and it is worth involving a solicitor and a GP so capacity is properly assessed and recorded. If capacity has gone, the only route left is a Court of Protection deputyship.
What is the difference between an LPA and an enduring power of attorney?
Enduring powers of attorney (EPAs) were replaced by LPAs in October 2007. An EPA made and signed before then is still valid and covers property and financial affairs only — it does not cover health and welfare. If you hold an EPA it must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian once the donor starts to lose capacity.
Can my attorney change my will or make gifts?
No, an attorney can never make or change your will. Gifts are tightly limited: attorneys may make modest gifts on customary occasions such as birthdays and weddings, to people connected with you, and only if affordable and in your best interests. Anything beyond that needs Court of Protection approval. Attorneys who help themselves are investigated and prosecuted.
Can I cancel an LPA?
Yes. While you have capacity you can revoke an LPA at any time by sending a signed deed of revocation to the Office of the Public Guardian. You can also change your attorneys — although that means making a fresh LPA and paying the registration fee again.
Do I need a solicitor to make an LPA?
No. The GOV.UK service is genuinely usable and most people complete it themselves. Use a solicitor if your finances are complex, if capacity might be questioned later, if there is any family tension about who is appointed, or if you want tailored restrictions written in — a badly worded restriction can make an LPA unusable in practice.
This is general information, not legal advice. Everyone's situation is different — speak to a qualified adviser before acting. KeepTheLot is an independent information service covering England & Wales. We are not a law firm.