What is a General Power of Attorney

A General Power of Attorney is not the same as a Lasting Power of Attorney.

A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is required if a donor loses the mental capacity to make decisions for themselves. There are two different types of LPA, one to manage a person’s Property & Financial Affairs and another to manage their Health & Welfare.

A General Power of Attorney is more of a short-term arrangement providing a limited grant of authority to deal with a donors financial affairs but does not continue if a donor loses the mental capacity to make decisions for themselves.

The Donor of a General Power of Attorney decides whether they want it to run for a fixed time period or until revoked by Deed of Revocation.

In a lot of cases, a General Power of Attorney is all that is required to give temporary control to someone when a donor is going to be temporarily absent or in the event of an accident.

For example, when an elderly person wants to allow family members to operate their bank accounts even though they are still mentally competent to do so themselves.

If someone is in the middle of a house purchase, during which time they have to travel abroad for an extended period and requires purchase transaction to be completed whilst they are away.

If you’re considering making a General Power of Attorney, make sure you speak to a professional provider such as a Professional Will Writing Company or Solicitor for advice on the best way to meet your needs and ensure you are provided with a fixed fee quotation for the service before proceeding.