A word of warning re bank accounts and POA

[Helenluvsrob]

My sis and I have POA for dad. We have struggled hugely to open an account at a 2nd bank account for dad ( as only 75k in a bank is protected isn't it?).

He's in a care home lacking capacity. If my mum hadn't renewed his passport a few years ago ( pointlessly as neither were fit to travel then) we simply woukd not have enough ID or him as he has no post to the home, no utility bills ( obv) no driving licence etc etc. My address is that for all his correspondence.

I do not think we would have been able to open a new account if we hadn't got the passport. There seemed no way round photo ID ( and his disabled parking card wasn't acceptable ).

Since he moved into the home after 1/4/15 even his benefit / pension statements are from the old address - we had to have a letter from the home to say he lived there ( bills not good enough) and the solicitors letter saying the house was sold.

If we'd have realised he needed accounts in different banks we wouldn't have closed the small joint accounts that he and mum had in a couple of places when she died - prior to the house sale it seemed logical the have his money together to manage it more easily. However it would be so much better to keep the other accounts open!

[gasman]

We (mostly my DBro) are sorting this out for an elderly relative.

In the main the financial institutions have been crap. Clydesdale get a special mention for wanting my brother to go through security using the Q's the account holder set up for themselves. They also registered the POA for the other attorney but only at branch level and didn!5 explain clearly that they had done this...

So phone banking or going to the branch closest to their hous was out...

[paulapantsdown]

I do not understand why the poa situation is sooooo difficult with banks? There must be thousands of us and yet it's always a nightmare when you have to do anything.

My uncle has 25k in a bank in Ireland and I cannot get it for him as they do not recognise the uk poa. I have resigned myself to just waiting until he dies and then they might close the account!

[Needmoresleep]

I assume that it all stems from money laundering regulations. My mother is due a compensation payment to do with a property she ownes but I first need to provide the solicitor with a passport, utility bill and the origional POA. (With the utility I am hoping that a bill for her address coming to my address will be OK.) Banks were as bad. I worked out that it was far easier gong into branches than doing it over the phone, but I still don't think I ever managed to sort it out in fewer than a couple of visits, quite often four or five.

Early on I resorted to dragging my poor DM (she did have an awful lot of accounts) down the High Street, sitting her down in each bank we came to and taking her passport and driving license (some banks irritatingly require two forms of photo ID - it took me ages to even locate her driving licence, which luckily was still valid) to the counter and asking if she had any money with them. Then getting her to sign to have it transferred there and then.

Another tip. Keep your parent on the electoral roll. I forget what I was trying to buy using her card, but their systems were clearly checking this as my address was not accepted, only hers. (And I think pension providers sometimes check as well.)

It would be nice to see someone like Age UK working with the FCA on clear and achievable requirements and guidelines. It took over a year for me to sort my mother's banking out.

[Oldieandgoldie]

My uncle has 25k in a bank in Ireland

Yes, English POA not always recognised abroad, and there is NOTHING you can do....except wait .

If at all possible, try to at least get the statements sent to your address. It took us over two years to achieve this. But the bank still won't talk to me about anything else, so unfortunately it's actually costing money just to keep the account open!