The Money Saving Expert founder has implored listeners to pay £82 for a document ‘more important than a will’ – and said he himself has had one in place since his 30s
The Money Saving Expert founder urged his podcast listeners to pay £82 for a document(Image: ITV)
Money Saving Expert founder Martin Lewis has urged listeners to shell out £82 for a document he considers ‘more important than a will’. The personal finance guru revealed he has maintained one since his thirties, describing it as ‘a really important thing to think about.
During yesterday’s BBC podcast, Mr Lewis emphasised that securing Power of Attorney was crucial. A lasting power of attorney (LPA) is a legal document that enables you, the ‘donor’, to designate one or more individuals, termed ‘attorneys’, to assist with decision-making or act on your behalf.
It serves to provide families with greater authority over what occurs should a person suffer an accident or illness and become unable to make their own choices – they might ‘lack mental capacity’, reports the Manchester Evening News. The current fee stands at £82 – though the government has cautioned this will rise to £92 from November 17.
Mr Lewis explained: “Wills are really important, but in my view, a power of attorney is even more so, which is why it’s worrying that far fewer people have them. Best is to have both. But when you’re dead, you’re dead, it’s just a question of where your assets go.
“But without a power of attorney, if you lose mental capacity, all your assets can be locked away with your loved ones unable to access them to pay for, say, your mortgage or even to pay for your care. What they then have to do is go through the nightmare of going to the court of protection that can take months or years is extremely stressful and costs a lot of money.
“So having a lasting power of attorney set up in advance where you’ve nominated trusted people to look after your finances if and only if you lose capacity so they can help you out, is crucial. Now you might just be thinking, yeah, that’s good for the elderly. No, I’m 53, I know, I look younger. But I’ve had one in place since my 30s. In my view, this is crucial peace of mind protection. If you haven’t got one, I know it’s a grown up thing to think about, but it’s also a really important thing to think about.”
There are 2 types of LPA:
health and welfareproperty and financial affairsHealth and welfare lasting power of attorney
Use this LPA to give an attorney the power to make decisions about things like:
your daily routine, for example washing, dressing, eatingmedical caremoving into a care homelife-sustaining treatmentProperty and financial affairs lasting power of attorney
Use this LPA to give an attorney the power to make decisions about money and property for you, for example:
managing a bank or building society accountpaying billscollecting benefits or a pensionselling your home
For more information Power of Attourney visit the government website here.
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