Long story short, my mum has today agreed with a solicitor to grant me Lasting Power of Attorney over whatever the two sides are, financial and the other one. It's a simple arrangement, I'm primary and her cousin is secondary if I'm indisposed.
Before I have a robust phone call with the solicitor tomorrow, how much would readers expect that drawing up the paperwork for this to cost?
It costs eighty two quid iirc to do it on line per type of power: financial or health so £160ish. No need to employ a solicitor. I’m not sure the solicitor can grant this doesn’t it still have to go through the office of public guardian?(ianal but as of this week I am my parents attorney)
My partner is a solicitor, and she reckons £250 + VAT for each document - prices based on where we live. Obviously depends where you're based, cities etc. may cost more.
Also £82 for court registration fee per document
It’s fairly straightforward to do it yourself without a solicitor
I think my mother in law paid £500 for Financial and the Heath and Welfare. I did my Mum's online for the 2 x £82. Some people choose to use a solicitor as the 'certificate provider' - that's somebody to sign that the person giving the power understands what they are doing and is not being pressured; has to be somebody they have known personally for 2 years, or from a list of professions (doesn't have to be a solicitor).
Both types of LPA are dead easy to do online.
The only issue you may need an agent for is to act as certificate provider if you don’t have any one suitable.
This is something I need to tackle too...
This is something I need to tackle too…
I’d been putting it off too, not really wanting to accept the need to do it, then there were a couple of hospitalisations and after care issues which upped the need to do it. Online was easy enough but it takes a fair few weeks to go through, think it was about eight in total.
Did this myself from both directions (becoming and granting) over last couple of years.
The government online site is really easy to use - basically a sequential form that take you through the various steps. Unless you have something out of the ordinary I don’t see any reason to pay for the solicitor if it’s just for form filling.
The doctors office did want a chunk of cash to act as the person verifying my mum was sound of mind and not being pressured etc. - we found someone else who’d know her for years and didn’t want 300 quid.
Did both my parents health and finance online. No solicitor needed and I’ve used both of them. It’s a really simple process and I cannot see why a solicitor is needed if parents consent and are of sound mind.
My partner is a solicitor, and she reckons £250 + VAT for each document
"Each document" - so finance and whatever the other one is are two separate documents?
prices based on where we live
Where's that? Price hiked or dropped?
Do it yourself £164 for both parts - Finantial + Health & Welfare.
We're unfortunately having to go down the Court of Protection route for a family member, going to cost circa £2.5-3K for Solicitor + Court Application fees, nigh on £400, plus this plus that...
It’s a really simple process and I cannot see why a solicitor is needed if parents consent and are of sound mind.
Its quite possible to do the paperworks yourself and just pay the submission fee - However everyone involved actually needs to understand whats going on. If a solicitor's fee includes asking some questions and giving some advice then maybe thats money well spent.
No shortage of threads on here in relation to POA where the recipients of that power don't really understand what it is or how it operates. Its a bit late to be asking once you are that Attorney - things tend to be a bit plate-spinney by then.
We’re unfortunately having to go down the Court of Protection route for a family member, going to cost circa £2.5-3K for Solicitor + Court Application fees, nigh on £400, plus this plus that
Indeed. I almost feel like POA is something you need to opt out of rather than opt into. A default setting that you'd only opt out of if you had a better plan in place. The situation you can be saddled with without it can be gruesome. I'm POA for my mum who's in her mid 70s and has dementia, but amongst her friends and contemporaries are folk also in their 70s seeing throwing bucket loads of their pension and savings into Court of Protection costs for their 90 year old parents
So I'm right to feel aggrieved that my elderly mother has just been taken for North of £960 to appoint me as POE and her cousin as backup then?
's what I thought.
My partner did it herself for her mum. There was a bit of hassle with the paperwork and a bit of back and forth to get it right. A cheap (or expensive) solicitor might have saved a bit of grief but she got there in the end.
So I’m right to feel aggrieved that my elderly mother has just been taken for North of £960 to appoint me as POE and her cousin as backup then?
‘s what I thought.
well it depends. Did the three of you walk in - asking clearly for both versions of POA - 'the financial thing and the other one', knowing what they are and why she wanted them, and why the two of you are best suited to fulfil those roles, and a friendly certificate provider on speed dial? Or did the solicitor discuss all this at length with your mum - all her options, not just POA - ascertain what your mums requirements are, explain who could or should be an attorney, why, and what it means for them, and so on.
Her paying £960 once on her own initiative has possibly saved you £2.5 - £3.5k every time you need to make a decision on her behalf in future. So you've dodged a bullet and she's done you a favour. It would have cost less if you and the cousin had taken the initiative, done the homework, informing and supporting your mum through the process and filed all the paperwork yourselves.
Where people have said how cheaply they've done POA by comparison notice who has actually done the work.
Where people have said how cheaply they’ve done POA by comparison notice who has actually done the work.
Explain this? My parents simply wanted their children to jointly and separately take responsibility for their financial affairs. We agreed and it worked perfectly until they both passed. What value could a solicitor have added here?
We did it and we're thick as bricks, £160ish rings a bell.
You've commited to £960 in 4hrs, after the advice above?
You said you weren't speaking to the solicitor until today?
You can cancel you know.
We did it for my mum (me, sister and brother) all on the website. Cost circa £40 from memory. Biggest hassle was posting forms to each other and getting signatures of witnesses. process is easy dont need a solicitor (my BIL is one and we didnt even bother him)
The point should be, it is Cougar's Mum who has decided to use a solicitor and I presume it is her money that is paying for that. I agree with Maccruiskeen the solicitor may have added value and provided guidance above and beyond simply drawing up the POA that Cougar doesn't know about because Cougar wasn't present. So by all means you can query the invoice but you shouldn't be too surprised if you simply get told that is how long it took. And not knowing the particulars, it is very important the "of sound mind" can't be queried, so perhaps Cougar's Mum thought better to pay a one-off belt-and-braces with the solicitor and be confident there won't be any problems. Hope she also sorted her will while there. For something as important as this, I would just let it go.
So,
I don't need to be lectured on the importance of putting this in place. It was me who instigated it in the first place, mindful of the fact that my dad lost his marbles at the click of the fingers and that thanks largely to the kindness of others we dodged a very large bullet that time. I was going to pay for it but it seems that message didn't fully make its way to either my mum or my solicitor.
I'm in the process of setting up POA for myself and my partner, setting up mutual agreements for each other. This was my 'in' with my mother, "we've just done this... hey, do you want me to get my solicitor to give you a call?" As far as I'm aware the agreement is a boilerplate "I [insert name here] nominate [insert name here] as LPA," there's nothing unusual or complex about it. Which is why I about fell off my chair when she told me she'd been billed for (I've confirmed with the solicitor now) £944 for it. That's more in fees than I've paid combined for me and my girlfriend.
Apologies Cougar didn't mean to come across as lecturery... and I'm sorry for the experience you've already been through with your Dad. That does look crappy if the solicitor is not saying they provided advice above the beyond completing the paperwork. Completely agree it easiest to start the conversation with 'I've just done this for myself...'
Cougar, Solicitors seem to see this as the money making opportunity du Jour and many are charging unjustifiable prices.
We charge £400 to advise on and provide both documents or £600 for four documents for a couple. The Office of the Public Guardian charge an additional £82 per document for registration.
A local solicitor who sees himself as my competition charges £1980 for the four documents. When I asked him why he said his clients could afford it and he was making good money doing a couple of cases a month. At that point we were doing ten cases a week, he couldn't see the logic of doing 'all that work'.
Legal Services is just like anything else, you need to shop around until you find the right value for what you need. You can do it for free yourself or get some advice and peace of mind and pay a professional.
If it was complicated I would understand why a solicitor may be required but it is very simple.
The gov.uk website deserves some credit for how easy it makes a variety of processes as it is very clear and very simplified (from Car tax, to Universal Credit to POA)
I wouldn't balk at paying in a complex case, but they are usually fairly simple with a DIY process that most people should be able to follow.
Cougar
Full Member
Which is why I about fell off my chair when she told me she’d been billed for (I’ve confirmed with the solicitor now) £944 for it. That’s more in fees than I’ve paid combined for me and my girlfriend.
I went through similar with my parents and they paid more than this. Its all well and good for a bunch of online computer nerds to say its dead simple and should cost 50p etc etc. But if you want to sit down with a good solicitor and have it all explained to you then you pay for that advice. My parents spent a bit more and they went through all the ins and outs of their Wills and various other bits and pieces. Legal fees will be on a structured basis - if you want to haggle then I'm sure they will share the detail with you.
We charge £350 + Vat and Disbursements (the Public Guardian fees) per person. We also store the originals and offer free certified copies to the parties involved.
