Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA)

Everybody who makes a Will should also make an Enduring Power of Attorney.

Enduring Power of Attorney (an 'EPA') is a document that you sign to appoint somebody to act for you should you become mentally incapable of managing your own financial affairs. (You can also specify it to start if for any reason you become incapable of managing your own affairs).

If you care enough about what happens to your assets after you die, you ought to care even more about keeping them safe whilst you are alive.

While a Will ensures that your estate is distributed according to your wishes when you die, an Enduring Power of Attorney protects your assets by authorising somebody chosen by you to deal with your affairs on your behalf (should you become unable to manage them yourself) whilst you are alive.

If you do not have an Enduring Power of Attorney, then if for any reason you suddenly become unable to manage your own affairs, e.g.

You suffer an accident and are confined to bed or hospital

You suffer a more serious accident which permanently incapacitates you

You become mentally incapacitated as a result of old age or for some other reason

... then the only way that your financial affairs can be managed is by an application (by a relative or other person close to you) to the Court of Protection. This can take up to 10 months and cost up to £1,000 to process - during which time your finances could be seriously damaged - and the person authorised to handle your affairs on your behalf is not only unlikely to be who you would have chosen, but may even be a Court Official - who can (and will) charge every time he/she acts for you.

If you have an Enduring Power of Attorney, your chosen representatives can act for you straight away if you become unable to handle your own affairs, and within a few weeks if you become mentally incapacitated.

Note that you must be mentally capable to make an EPA. Therefore - just like a Will - if you don't have one then by the time you really need one it's too late.

How much does it cost and how do I make one?

The cost of an EPA at tenminutewill.co.uk is £27.95 for a Single EPA and £39.95 for a pair of EPAs. There is a discount of £10 if you buy a Will and an EPA.

Making an EPA at tenminutewill.co.uk is easy: -

(a) If you've already made a Will at our site, login and select the 'Make an Enduring Power of Attorney' option.

(b) If you haven't already made a Will at the ten minute wills site, you have 2 options: -

If you want to make a Will and / or an EPA, click here

Once you've created the EPA, all you have to do is print it and sign it in the presence of at least 1 witness. We send you full instructions for this process and, just like a Will, you do not need a Solicitor to carry it out.

That's all there is to it!

wills