Most people know they should have a Will. Fewer realise that a Will does not decide who can manage their finances or make decisions about their health and welfare if they lose capacity during their lifetime. That is where a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) comes in.
A Will and an LPA do different jobs, but together they can help protect your wishes, give you more control over the future and reduce uncertainty for the people closest to you.
What is the difference between a Will and a Lasting Power of Attorney?
A Will sets out what should happen to your estate after you die. This can include your home, savings, possessions, and any gifts you would like to leave to family, friends or charities. It also lets you appoint executors to deal with your estate and, where relevant, guardians for children.
A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is for use during your lifetime. It allows people you trust, known as attorneys – to make decisions for you if you can no longer make or communicate those decisions yourself.
Do I need both a Will and an LPA?
For many people, the answer is yes.
A Will lets you decide what happens to your estate after you die. An LPA lets you choose who could make important decisions for you if illness, injury or another change in circumstances meant that you could not make them yourself.
Without a Will, the law decides who inherits under the rules of intestacy. Without an LPA, your spouse, partner, children or other relatives do not automatically have authority to manage your finances or make wider decisions for you.
What happens if I lose capacity without an LPA?
If you lose mental capacity without a registered LPA in place, you can no longer choose who acts for you. A family member or friend may need to apply to the Court of Protection to be appointed as a Deputy before they can make certain decisions on your behalf.
This can be more costly and time-consuming than putting an LPA in place in advance. It can also create unnecessary pressure at a difficult time, particularly where bills need to be paid, property needs to be managed or decisions about care are required.
An LPA must be made while you have the mental capacity to understand it and make the decision freely. Once capacity has been lost, it is generally too late to create one.
Questions worth asking yourself
You may want to consider:
- If something happened to me, who would I want to benefit from my estate?
- Am I married, in a civil partnership or living with a partner without being married?
- Do I have children from a previous relationship, stepchildren or other family circumstances to consider?
- Who would I trust to manage my finances or make health and welfare decisions on my behalf?
- Would the people I choose understand the responsibility involved?
- Are there vulnerable or disabled loved ones who may need additional protection?
- Do I own a business, property portfolio, overseas assets or anything else that needs special consideration?
- Would family members agree with my wishes, or could disagreements arise later?
These questions are not always straightforward. While the paperwork itself may appear simple, the choices you make can have a lasting impact on you, your family and the people you care about.
When specialist advice matters
Specialist advice can be particularly helpful if your situation involves:
- A blended family, second marriage, stepchildren or an unmarried partner.
- A vulnerable or disabled beneficiary who may need additional protection.
- A business, rental property, holiday home, overseas assets or other complex property interests.
- Inheritance Tax, future care fees or concerns about how assets should be managed.
- A wish to treat family members differently, exclude someone or reduce the risk of disagreement later.
- Difficult choices about who should act as attorney, how they should act or what authority they should have.
At Powells, our specialist Later Life team takes the time to understand your circumstances, explain your options in plain English and help you put arrangements in place that work in practice – not just on paper.
Is making a Will or LPA difficult?
The process is often more manageable than people expect, particularly with the right support.
For a Will, we discuss your circumstances and wishes, explain the options available to you (including appointing executors), prepare the document to reflect your instructions, talk you through it clearly, and guide you through signing and witnessing it correctly.
For an LPA, we help you choose the right type of LPA, appoint attorneys and any replacements, consider the guidance or limits you want to include, prepare the documents and register them with the Office of the Public Guardian. An LPA must be registered before an attorney can use it.
Download the guide
Our free Wills & LPAs: Planning for Now and the Future document explains:
- The differences between a Will and an LPA.
- A simple five-step process for putting each in place.
- Important things people often do not realise.
- The situations where expert advice can make a real difference.
View or download the Wills & LPAs infographic
Speak to Powells
Take the first step towards peace of mind. To discuss making or updating a Will, arranging an LPA or a more complex later-life planning matter, contact Powells Solicitors on 01934 623 501 or email helpforyou@powellslaw.com