Lasting Power of Attorneys on the rise as dementia and Alzheimers become Britain's biggest cause of death

Dementia and Alzheimers have become the biggest cause of death in Britain for the first time, overtaking heart disease.  This increase has consequently led to the rise in Lasting Power of Attorneys (LPAs), and here Sue Nicholson, Private Client Lawyer, explains the importance of having an LPA in place.

What is a Lasting Power of Attorney?

An LPA is a legal document that assigns people of your choosing to be in charge of your finance, property, health and welfare arrangements should you loose capacity to do so.  “One of the most important things about an LPA is that element of a person of your choosing,” explains Sue.  “If you do not have an LPA in place and unfortunately do loose capacity through dementia, Alzheimers or another debilitating illness, then the role will not automatically fall to your next of kin and it will be up to the Courts to decide what happens to your assets.”

Information from a Freedom of Information request shows that 441,500 LPAs were set up in 2015, compared to 36,000 in 2008.  There had already been 300,000 registrations from January – August 2016.

Rise in Alzheimer’s and dementia

Dementia encompasses a variety of degenerative disorders that have an affect on a person’s brain functions to control actions such as thinking, remembering and reasoning.  Alzheimers is the most common form of dementia, accounting for approximately 62% of dementia cases with a total of 850,000 people in the UK living with dementia.  These figures are expected to rise to more than a million by 2025.

Figures from the Office of National Statistics reveal that deaths from dementia and Alzheimers rose by a fifth in 2015, accounting for almost one in eight deaths, a total of 61,686 people.  “Unfortunately these figures show that more and more people are suffering each year from these terrible diseases, partly due to our ageing population and also the improved ability to now detect and diagnose patients,” continues Sue. 

“As there is no cure, it’s important that people do plan ahead.  This is naturally a very difficult conversation to have, and a subject where we all think it won’t happen to us,” continues Sue.   “An LPA is one way of protecting yours and your family’s future should this happen to you.  Without an LPA in place, your family will have to apply to the Court of Protection and show evidence as to why they are best placed to manage your affairs.  At a time when they will already be emotionally drained, this adds more concern, worry and financial burden to them as the process takes up to 16 weeks and will incur Court fees.”

To find out more about Lasting Power of Attorneys you can visit the Private Client section of the website here, alternatively contact Sue or the team on 01329 222075 or email privateclientenquiry@warnergoodman.co.uk.

ENDS

This is for information purposes only and is no substitute for, and should not be interpreted as, legal advice.  All content was correct at the time of publishing and we cannot be held responsible for any changes that may invalidate this article.