Life can be very unpredictable, as the passengers on a recent flight to Singapore discovered when their plane plunged 6,000 feet due to unexpected turbulence. None of the air crew or passengers had any warning of the turbulence. Sadly, the serious incident resulted in one fatal heart attack and multiple injuries amongst both passengers and crew.
May 2024 is Stroke Awareness Month, reminding us that in the UK, someone will have a stroke every 5 minutes. Strokes too often happen without warning, and it's important that everyone knows the warning signs and can act F.A.S.T..
The positive side is that just as the majority of the airline passengers escaped serious injury, there are 1.3 million stroke survivors, some of whom owe their life to the quick actions of others.
The slow road to recovery
It's important to remember that surviving a serious injury, major illness or accident doesn't mean life will return to normal instantly. Survivors may need to spend an extended time in hospital, followed by a long period of recovery and rehabilitation.
Cartoonist Rupert Fawcett, creator of the popular "Off the Leash" and "Fred" cartoons, suffered a stroke back in early 2024. His Facebook page charts his recovery, the excellent care he has received at his neurorehab centre, and his rehabilitation to help him walk and draw again. Until he is able to resume full-time work, his business now focusses on personalised, signed prints of some of his most famous cartoons.
And the point is?
The point of all these stories is to show that if you can at least try to prepare for the unexpected, it makes so much sense to do so.
That's where LPAs (Lasting Powers of Attorney) come in. LPAs can't prevent the unexpected happening, but they can make life easier for those around you to help you when you cannot help yourself.
Every adult, regardless of age and circumstances, should have personal Lasting Powers of Attorney in place. These documents are your safety net for those times when you are not able to manage your financial affairs or make important medical decisions for yourself. An LPA allows people you have appointed as attorneys to act on your behalf and in your best interests.
Your personal LPAs
As described in our recent blog on LPAs:
- Your Health and Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney gives your attorneys the power to make decisions about your medical treatments and long-term care.
- Your Property and Finance Lasting Power of Attorney give your attorneys authority to manage your bank accounts, pay bills, collect benefits and pensions, make financial decisions on your behalf and even sell your home.
- Each LPA requires a separate form and separately named attorneys. You can and should have more than one attorney per LPA.
LPAs for couples
LPAs are very important documents that can be "switched on" when required and turned off when not. If you are a couple, you need to have your own pair of LPAs each. That's why at Panthera Estate Planning, we offer a "package deal" for couples when making their LPAs together at the same appointments. This service includes:
- Talking through your wishes and requirements
- Filling out your forms accurately
- Getting in touch with your attorneys and obtaining their signatures
- Ensuring your application/s are submitted correctly
Our fees start at £400 for a single LPA, with all four LPAs for a couple (2 each) at a special rate of just £1000 per couple (excludes OPG registration fees).
Your business LPA
Rupert Fawcett was perhaps fortunate in that his business had a back catalogue that he could fall back on to support him financially and keep his business running (or rather, his wife could.)
However, as we said in a previous blog on business LPAs:
"If you are the sole director of your business and you become incapacitated, your bank accounts may be frozen, you won’t be able to sign contracts, or even appoint another director to do all this for you. So your business could come to a halt, and your livelihood could disappear."
Again, having an LPA in place is a safety net that you can activate temporary and deactivate once you are able to resume - you have not ‘lost’ your business permanently.
For more details, contact us for expert help in setting up your business LPA.