If you’re looking to set up a power of attorney in England or Wales, we’re here to help.
What is a power of attorney?
A power of attorney (POA) is a legal document that allows a donor to put someone they trust in charge of any important decisions. They can name just one person or choose several people to act on their behalf. Anyone named in the document becomes an ‘attorney’.
They can put a power of attorney in place on a temporary or long-term basis. For example, if they're in hospital and need help managing their household bills, or if they’ve been diagnosed with an illness that means they won’t be able to make their own decisions.
To create a power of attorney, the donor needs to have the mental ability to make financial, property, and medical decisions for themself. The power of attorney is usually created by a solicitor or through the government website.
Find out more about creating a power of attorney on the GOV.UK website.
Types of power of attorney
There are 2 types of lasting power of attorney (LPA):
- Property and financial affairs
- Health and welfare
To manage a TSB account, a property and financial affairs lasting power of attorney is needed. This type of LPA gives permission to make financial decisions and carry out day-to-day transactions on the donor’s behalf.
Before it can be used, it’ll need to be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian. Once it’s registered it’ll stay valid even if the donor loses the mental capacity to make their own decisions.
Mental capacity
When a power of attorney is registered with us, we’ll ask whether the donor still has the mental capacity to manage their financial affairs. If the power of attorney is not entirely sure how to answer, the NHS website has more information about mental capacity and about the practical application of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.
Attorneys may need to support someone they know who has lost the capacity to deal with their financial affairs. This government guide contains useful information: Make decisions on behalf of someone.
What can a power of attorney do?
An attorney can help make decisions about the donor’s finances and act on their behalf.
The donor can appoint one person as a sole attorney, or several people either jointly or severally. With joint power of attorney, all attorneys need to act together. This means any services which would allow just one attorney to access the account by themselves, such as debit cards, internet banking, mobile banking, and telephone banking cannot be provided . Joint attorneys can access the donor’s account by visiting a local branch together.
If the power of attorney document contains restrictions, we need to comply with them. This might mean that we cannot provide certain services.
Below is a full breakdown of what a power of attorney can do:
| What can an attorney do | General POA | Enduring POA | Lasting POA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manage donor's account if mental capacity is lost | No | Yes** | Yes |
| Hold a debit card | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Issue cheques, make payments, withdraw cash | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Pay in cash/cheques | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Order cheque book and credit book | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Order a replacement debit card and PIN | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Order a statement | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Set up/amend/cancel direct debits or standing orders | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Access telephone banking | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Access online and mobile banking | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Change donor's address | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Apply for an ISA | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Open/close account on donor's behalf | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Obtain information on donor's account | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Retrieve items from safe custody | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sign a mortgage loan agreement | No | No | No |
| Arrange an overdraft | No | No | No |
A general power of attorney is a legal document that appoints one or more attorneys to make financial decisions for the donor. These are usually for short term arrangements, for example going on a three-month cruise. For anything long-term it may be better to consider an LPA. A general power of attorney is also known as an ordinary power of attorney.
A general power of attorney normally applies to all the donor’s affairs, but in some cases it can be limited to specific affairs only. This is known as a specific power of attorney.
A general power of attorney is only valid whilst the donor has mental capacity.
Enduring powers of attorney (EPA) only apply to England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. They’re still issued in Northern Ireland but not in England or Wales.
An enduring power of attorney signed in England or Wales before 1 October 2007 is still valid and can be accepted.
An EPA works the same way as the other types of power of attorney. With the donor’s permission, a valid EPA can start at any time. However, the EPA must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian when the donor starts to lose their mental capacity. If we’re asked to add an EPA which has already been registered with the OPG, we’ll treat this as confirmation that the donor has lost mental capacity and will stop them from accessing their account.
Find out more about enduring powers of attorney on the GOV.UK website.
A court of protection order can be issued when someone loses their mental capacity and there’s no power of attorney in place. The court of protection will appoint a deputy to manage their affairs.
Find out more on the GOV.UK website.
There are 2 types of lasting power of attorney (LPA):
- Property and financial affairs
- Health and welfare
To manage a TSB account, a property and financial affairs lasting power of attorney is needed. This type of LPA gives permission to make financial decisions and carry out day-to-day transactions on the donor’s behalf.
Before it can be used, it’ll need to be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian. Once it’s registered it’ll stay valid even if the donor loses the mental capacity to make their own decisions.
Mental capacity
When a power of attorney is registered with us, we’ll ask whether the donor still has the mental capacity to manage their financial affairs. If the power of attorney is not entirely sure how to answer, the NHS website has more information about mental capacity and about the practical application of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.
Attorneys may need to support someone they know who has lost the capacity to deal with their financial affairs. This government guide contains useful information: Make decisions on behalf of someone.
What can a power of attorney do?
An attorney can help make decisions about the donor’s finances and act on their behalf.
The donor can appoint one person as a sole attorney, or several people either jointly or severally. With joint power of attorney, all attorneys need to act together. This means any services which would allow just one attorney to access the account by themselves, such as debit cards, internet banking, mobile banking, and telephone banking cannot be provided . Joint attorneys can access the donor’s account by visiting a local branch together.
If the power of attorney document contains restrictions, we need to comply with them. This might mean that we cannot provide certain services.
Below is a full breakdown of what a power of attorney can do:
| What can an attorney do | General POA | Enduring POA | Lasting POA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manage donor's account if mental capacity is lost | No | Yes** | Yes |
| Hold a debit card | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Issue cheques, make payments, withdraw cash | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Pay in cash/cheques | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Order cheque book and credit book | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Order a replacement debit card and PIN | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Order a statement | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Set up/amend/cancel direct debits or standing orders | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Access telephone banking | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Access online and mobile banking | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Change donor's address | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Apply for an ISA | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Open/close account on donor's behalf | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Obtain information on donor's account | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Retrieve items from safe custody | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sign a mortgage loan agreement | No | No | No |
| Arrange an overdraft | No | No | No |
A general power of attorney is a legal document that appoints one or more attorneys to make financial decisions for the donor. These are usually for short term arrangements, for example going on a three-month cruise. For anything long-term it may be better to consider an LPA. A general power of attorney is also known as an ordinary power of attorney.
A general power of attorney normally applies to all the donor’s affairs, but in some cases it can be limited to specific affairs only. This is known as a specific power of attorney.
A general power of attorney is only valid whilst the donor has mental capacity.
Enduring powers of attorney (EPA) only apply to England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. They’re still issued in Northern Ireland but not in England or Wales.
An enduring power of attorney signed in England or Wales before 1 October 2007 is still valid and can be accepted.
An EPA works the same way as the other types of power of attorney. With the donor’s permission, a valid EPA can start at any time. However, the EPA must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian when the donor starts to lose their mental capacity. If we’re asked to add an EPA which has already been registered with the OPG, we’ll treat this as confirmation that the donor has lost mental capacity and will stop them from accessing their account.
Find out more about enduring powers of attorney on the GOV.UK website.
A court of protection order can be issued when someone loses their mental capacity and there’s no power of attorney in place. The court of protection will appoint a deputy to manage their affairs.
Find out more on the GOV.UK website.
Popular questions
Yes.
If the donor chooses to appoint more than one attorney, the donor needs to pick whether they are to act together (jointly) or if they can act both together or individually (jointly and severally).
It’s worth knowing that attorneys acting 'jointly' won't be able to access telephone banking, online banking, mobile banking, or have a debit card. Joint attorneys can manage the donor’s account by visiting their local branch together.
Yes, it’s the same process as appointing an individual as an attorney. However, video banking isn’t available to solicitors or firms.
A Court of Protection order can be issued when someone loses mental capacity and there is no lasting power of attorney or enduring power of attorney in place.
A deputy is someone appointed by the Court of Protection to manage the affairs of someone who lacks the mental capacity to do it themselves. Find more information on this at GOV.UK.
If the donor of the power of attorney passes away the POA is no longer valid. The attorney will not have the authority to manage the financial affairs of the deceased.
We’re usually not able to accept foreign power of attorneys but may be able to do so in exceptional circumstances.
If there are any restrictions in the power of attorney, we need to comply with them. This might mean that the donor’s attorneys cannot access some of our services, such as telephone banking, online banking, mobile banking, or having a debit card.
It may also take longer to register with us because we may need additional information.
To revoke or cancel a power of attorney, the donor will need to contact the office of public guardianship for advice, as the process for this is different depending on the type of power of attorney held.
LPAs and EPAs
If the donor would like to stop their attorney acting for them, they need to contact the Office of the Public Guardian to revoke the power of attorney. In addition, please let us know as well so we can stop the attorney from accessing the donor’s account whilst the Office of the Public Guardian processes the revocation.
A next of kin does not override a power of attorney.
A donor can either apply directly through the office of public guardianship, or do it using a solicitor.
