Yahoo Finance Power of attorney process overhauled to combat 20-week delays
Families will be able to apply for power of attorney over their elderly parents online for the first time, under plans to cut five-month waiting times that have left vulnerable people "financially powerless".
In a digital overhaul of the 30-year-old paper system, the Ministry of Justice said applying for the legal documents will become quicker and easier.
It comes after this newspaper shone a light on chronic delays at the Office of the Public Guardian, the department responsible for issuing the papers, which had left families unable to sell properties in order to fund their relatives' care.
Power of attorney agreements allow families to make crucial financial or medical decisions on behalf of vulnerable or elderly relatives who are no longer able to do so themselves.
But wait times as long as 20 weeks, which first began to pile up during the pandemic, meant elderly people faced being evicted from their care homes, as their children were unable to sell their parents’ assets to fund their care.
Others said they were losing thousands to costly equity release mortgages they were unable to escape, as they were waiting for official papers which would give them the right to sell their parents' properties.
Age UK, Britain's biggest charity for the elderly said the changes were a "welcome first step".
Shaun Moore of advisers Quilter said the revamp was "long overdue" and represented a victory for families left "financially powerless due to crippling civil service delays that were becoming all too familiar".
“The sluggish service currently being delivered is putting immense pressure on those nominated but not yet registered as attorneys and is costing them precious time and money," he said.
Power of attorneys are becoming increasingly common as the population ages and mentally degenerative diseases such as dementia become more prevalent.
There are more than six million registered power of attorney agreements in place today.
Despite the rise, the Office of the Public Guardian still handles more than 19 million pieces of paper every year and many elements of the system have not been upgraded since the start of the 1990s.
Justice Minister Tom Pursglove said digitisation would help reduce the Government's carbon footprint, as well as reducing errors and cutting waiting times.
He added the new set up would include safety checks to protect against fraudsters, such as abusive carers obtaining control over an elderly person’s finances.
Online applicants will be asked for official documents, such as a driving licence, passport or a Government Gateway ID.
Those who prefer to use the paper-based system will still be able to do so.
