Secret court seizes £3.2bn from elderly… and even forces furious families to pay to access own bank account
A report in the Daily Mail reported on the draconian measures imposed by the Court of Protection. In summary it report that there were over 3,000 complaints in the first 18 months of the new system. That families were made to pay to access their own bank account and that homes of the elderly were raided in order to search for documents.
All of this because people failed to take out Lasting Powers of Attorney.
The Court of Protection (CoP) hears about 23,000 cases a year – always in private – involving people deemed unable to take their own decisions whose loved ones have not taken out Lasting Power of Attorney over their finances or welfare. Without a Power of Attorney no loved one has any right to take decisions on behalf of those unable to do so themselves, so each decision has to be agreed by the CoP,
Spouses, carers or loved ones trying to cope with a mentally impaired nearest and dearest are forced to apply for a court order to access their loved one’s money, because as soon as someone has lost the ability to take their own decisions any financial account they are registered to is frozen, including joint bank accounts!
This is to protect the person as they are deemed vulnerable but it makes those who only want to help feel as though they were out to defraud their relatives.
So don’t be caught out by the CoP and it’s draconian measures – you have been warned. Everyone should have Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) appointing people they trust to take decisions on their finances and welfare.