Using POA online codes?

[Beansandcheesearegood]

Got POA for dad and I've registered it online. What next? Does he have to go into bank etc or can I ring bank / dr etc then give them an access code to view online?

@HumerousHumous you might be right, she may not have needed to be there but I didn’t want to take the chance!

@Defender90 why did you need to register with DWP, I hadn’t thought of them…

@RememberDecember incase I need to call about her state pension, when I called to confirm it was done with HMRC they said the DWP system was separate and to make sure I registered it with them as well.

Thanks all, just having a bit of a nightmare with Barckays at moment- there's so few actual branches now too!

Could I jump on and ask a question? We have got registered POAs for my parents, over the weekend we agreed that we need to start using them but I haven't dug them out yet to see when they were registered (3 or 4 years ago IIRC). What is meant by certified copies, do you have to get a solicitor to sign them or similar? If they are needed does each bank etc keep them or just need to see them, how many copies to get. Also DB and I are named jointly and severally IIRC (again need to check). Should just one of us register for now? It's not house sales or similar for the foreseeable, just everyday banking etc.

We did our POAs, initially, through a solicitor before we clocked that this wasn't necessary and could be done by us and we received a certified (solicitor stamped) copy which we had to pay for. If you are doing it yourself the copy that comes back from the OPG is certified and has a weird edging to it. The latter is a valid POA and can be shown to banks etc.

Per my previous post, nobody accepted the online access code, only the DWP and Attendance Allowance Office, so you'll need the hard copy.

Some organisations, such as broadband supplier and a utilities company, accepted an emailed pdf of the certified POA.

The 'jointly and severally' is the best to get as it means you can act on behalf of the donors (your parents) independently of your DB. Helpful if there is a distance between the attorneys. If you hadn't got jointly and severally you would need your brother's signature on everything.

Only the attorney should need to be in attendance to register the POA with a bank. I went to the bank to register my DF's POA and they didn't need him to go there but I had to show the hard copy POA and bring two forms of ID. The bank, I think if I remember correctly, took the POA, scanned it and then gave it back to me.

I recall, a couple of times, I was asked to send the certified POA hard copy to organisations but I refused explaining that it had cost £40 and I didn't want to risk it getting lost in the post and I was able to email a scanned copy. In a couple of instances where organisations have been difficult I have found paperwork and set up an online account and managed things that way, avoiding the POA hassle, which it sometimes can be.

Thank you, I have got the originals filed away, planning to dig them out this weekend and set up the online codes even if they do not prove to be much use. I assume it is possible for just me, or just DB to act with any individual organisation, as well as both of us, that’s what is meant by jointly and severally. I live about half an hour drive from DParents and he lives about an hour in the opposite direction, so we are thinking separate for now until something big like a house sale comes along. Also I assume it is still possible for the DParents to use their own bank accounts etc as well as us. They still have capacity but a combination of physical and mental impairments plus refusal to use online services are making it harder and harder to manage as branches disappear and they are looking for a safety net rather than a total takeover at the moment.

Yes it's possible for DPs to still operate their own bank accounts alongside your POA.

Our solicitor advised to always set up as jointly and severally and yes with J&S you can operate without needing your DB. Particularly useful for distance, time etc.

Thank you, I suspect I will be posting on this board more and more in the coming months and years. I will get the ball rolling at the weekend.

Worth getting it going sooner rather than later @ExquisiteDecorations, the banks seem very slow to actually get it fully active if you then want to set up online access. Everywhere I went just took a copy of the original so I didn’t need to get certified copies. Some of them did say that they will now send all correspondence to me rather than DP so that is something to bear in mind if they are used to dealing with all that and like the reassurance of paper copies.

Thanks, to be honest I'm dreading it, life is very busy already and worried about juggling it all. Lucky we aren't doing it in an emergency situation and that it is already registered. One of the banks I am already a customer of which might help.

It definitely helps if you already a customer, at least I have found that. I can see my parents accounts listed alongside mine in the app for one of the banks without a separate login required.