General Power of Attorney: a bridge while your LPA is registered
A General Power of Attorney gives someone you trust immediate authority to manage your finances now, while your Lasting Power of Attorney works its way through registration. Here's how the two fit together.
What is a General Power of Attorney?
Quick summary: A General (or "Ordinary") Power of Attorney lets you appoint someone to manage your financial affairs for as long as you have mental capacity. Unlike a Lasting Power of Attorney, it doesn't need to be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian before use, so it can take effect almost immediately. The trade-off is that it automatically stops working the moment you lose mental capacity, so it's a short-term solution alongside an LPA, not a substitute for one.
It's a genuinely useful, and often overlooked, document. Once it's properly signed and witnessed as a deed, your attorney can start acting for you straight away, there's no registration process or waiting period to get through first.
Why we often recommend one alongside registering your LPA
The Office of the Public Guardian currently takes around 20 weeks to register a Lasting Power of Attorney. During that wait, everyday financial tasks, paying bills, accessing accounts, dealing with your bank, can become genuinely difficult if you're not able to manage them yourself.
A General Power of Attorney can be drafted and put to use almost immediately, giving your attorney the ability to step in straight away, while your LPA continues through registration in the background. Once the LPA is registered, it takes over, and the General Power of Attorney simply falls away.
We regularly draft these as a stop-gap for clients in situations like:
- Recovering from surgery or a hospital stay and temporarily unable to manage your own finances.
- Travelling or living abroad for an extended period.
- Physically unable to get to the bank or manage paperwork day to day.
- Simply wanting cover for the months while your LPA works through OPG registration.
What it can, and can't, do
What it can do: manage your bank accounts, pay bills, and handle routine financial matters or specific transactions on your behalf, for as long as you have capacity. You stay in control throughout, and can supervise or revoke it at any time.
What it can't do: continue if you lose mental capacity, this is the critical difference from an LPA. It also only ever covers financial matters, never health or welfare decisions, and it isn't a long-term substitute for a properly registered LPA.
Need cover while your LPA is being registered?
If there's a gap to bridge, we can usually draft a General Power of Attorney within days, no OPG registration required. Your LPA continues through registration in parallel.
How it works
From instruction to a document you can use
Straightforward, and usually much quicker than an LPA, since there's no registration wait involved.
Free Consultation
We talk through your situation and confirm a General Power of Attorney is the right stop-gap, alongside your LPA if you don't already have one in progress.
We Draft the Document
We prepare your General Power of Attorney, tailored to what you need it to cover.
Signed as a Deed
It's signed and properly witnessed, the legal requirement for it to take effect.
Ready to Use Immediately
No OPG registration required, your attorney can act straight away, while your LPA continues through registration separately.
Need cover while your LPA is being registered?
Call 01934 442030 for a free, no-obligation conversation about whether a General Power of Attorney is the right stop-gap for your situation.
Home visits across Somerset, or online anywhere in England and Wales.
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