A Power of Attorney are formal legal documents through which a person can grant a Power of Attorney appointing one or more trusted family members, or close friends to be their Attorney. The chosen Attorney(s) will in due course receive the legal power to speak on their behalf and help make their important decisions.

Donor is the person who grants a Power of Attorney appointing one or more family members, or close friends to be their Attorney.

Attorney is a person or people who have been legally appointed by a Donor through a Power of Attorney to speak on the Donors behalf and help make important decisions for the Donor.

Certificate Provider is a person who counter signs a Power of Attorney document confirming they consider the Donor understands that they are voluntarily granting a Power of Attorney. A Certificate Provider must have known the Donor for more than two years and not be related to the Donor or their Attorney(s). Most people choose friends or neighbours to be the Certificate Provider. However, professional Certificate Providers are available and their service is included in our Assisted Power of Attorney Service.

The Power of Attorney service offered by most firms and online does not give an Attorney the legal power to speak for the Donor or help make their important decisions until the Power of Attorney has been registered with the Government department known as the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG). The Office of the Public Guardian's registration process takes over 4 months to complete. However, our Express Power of Attorney service can put into place a legal Power of Attorney in only 4 days.

We consulted with leading Solicitors and later life Advocates who specialise in this area when we designed our Power of Attorney services, so that we can put into place a legal Power of Attorney in only 4 days. Alternatively, if you are able to find a top flight firm of Solicitors who specialises in this area, they may also be able to set up a legal Power of Attorney in only a few days. However, the you may have to wait several weeks for an appointment at their offices and they will probably charge thousands of pounds for this service.

A person who grants a Power of Attorney (the Donor) should have the Mental Capacity to understand they are granting a Power of Attorney and by choosing to do so their Attorney(s) will receive the legal power to speak on their behalf and make important decisions for them.

The legal definition of Mental Capacity is contained in the 187 pages of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. However, in simple terms Mental Capacity is the ability to understand information, make a decision based on the information and communicate the decision. The Mental Capacity Act fully acknowledges that a person's Mental Capacity can fluctuate from hour to hour and day to day. For example a person suffering dementia could have the Mental Capacity to grant a Power of Attorney on a particular day, then return thereafter to a state of dementia in which they lack Mental Capacity, because this person possessed Mental Capacity when they signed the Power of Attorney their Power of Attorney is valid.

If a person loses Mental Capacity without having put in place a Power of Attorney Social Services will make their important decisions and manage their affairs. If someone else wants to make important decisions and manage the persons affairs instead, they will have to apply to the Court of Protection to be appointed the person's Deputy. Asking to become a Deputy involves making a formal application to the Court setting out the grounds for the application and the specific areas they wish to manage. Because the person applying to the Court was not previously made the persons Attorney the Court may refuse to grant the request. If the Court does grant the request the Deputy will be required to report and account for their decisions to the Office of the Public Guardian. The legal process of applying to the Court of Protection can be complicated, stressful and very expensive.

Enduring Power of Attorney is a legal document through which a person could choose one or more people to be their Attorney(s) to make their decisions relating to property and financial matters. However, Enduring Power of Attorney cease to be available in 2005.

NHS Continuing Health Care (CHC) funding is available for people who are assessed as having a “primary health need”. If approved for Continuing Health Care funding all Home Care fees will be paid by the NHS and all Care Home fees will also be paid by the NHS. You can read more about NHS Continuing Health Care funding here.