Office of Public guardians investigation

[Spendysis]

Does anyone have any experience of office of public guardians investigations.

I have mentioned my situation on here plenty of times on various threads

I reported my dsis for financially abusing dm over a year ago and it has finally been assigned to an opg investigator who advised me I wouldn't get any updates or hear from them unless they need more information.

I have just had a call from an independent doctor who opg have instructed to visit dm to assess her capacity and if she is vulnerable being influenced etc.

Will opg inform me if any action has been taken like if they remove dsis as poa? If they do who does poa go to can dm choose or is it chosen for her. Will I be informed when they close the investigation?

Social services visited dm previously and reported it to the police who then closed the case unless opg come up with something will opg notify them directly if they do find something? I think ss have opened their case again but I've not heard anything other than a generic email

Just wondering if anyone has any experience of any of this so I know what to expect

Will dsis know she is being investigated by opg? Will they ask her for bank statements or receipts as part of the investigation

As financial pia your s should be keeping records of any spending on mums behalf anyway, I'm no expert but it sounds awful, was she stealing, where does mum live at the moment.

Yes, she will be aware as the OPG will ask her for copies of bank statements, receipts etc. I’m speaking from a position of having reported attorney’s to the OPG when I have had suspicions of financial abuse. In my experience the police will defer to an OPG investigation but will liaise with them as necessary.

@MissMoneyFairy I believe dsis is stealing from dm by transferring money from her account to her own to use for personal spending and her own bills. I caught her out and we had a family meeting as i advised her she would get in trouble if the bank picked up on it or if dm needed care in future etc dsis blocked me afterwards and has made my relationship with dm difficult I believe this is what she is still doing it

Dsis had her remove me as poa and since registered poa with the bank has convinced her to do an equity release mortgage dm told me dsis needed it to do home improvements on her own house and go on holiday land registry confirmed this has gone through and changed her will. She has isolated dm who no longer lets me in her house when I go round to see her so I don't go anymore as I can't have a conversation on the doorstep as there is a ring doorbell connected to dsis phone as far as I am aware dm still lives in her own house I periodically drive past and curtains open and close lights on etc

@DianaTavernerFirstDesk thank you. The statements will show dsis transferring money from dm account to her own which she then used to pay her own bills and for her own personal spending. Apart from weekly food shopping dsis didn't realise need to use dm account or money as all her bills come out her own account by dd

Don't not visit your mum even if you have to stand on the doorstep. Take flowers or cake.
Sorry you are going through this, hope it gets sorted. If your sister is doing what you think it's despicable.

@ByQuaintAzureWasp I know you are right i was shocked when the last few times i went round and she didn't invite me in just made excuses like there was no point as she hasn't been doing anything so no point

I am hurt and disappointed with her that she has allowed dsis to do all this as social services think she has capacity so i think i gave up to protect my own mental health we were all very close until this happened i am very hurt by them both of them as are my young adult dc

What if dsis doesn't send in the bank statements can opg contact the bank or apply to the court to get access I can't see her willingly sending them

She has to produce them

@MissMoneyFairy thank you

I never thought I would be in this situation I am heartbroken by what dsis has done to me and my family yet I hate the thought of dsis getting in trouble but surely she can't get away with what she has been doing to dm

How awful
I've just started using the poa on my dad's account and have a spreadsheet of every transaction
My husband has 4 years of spreadsheets as he does all his dad's banking

@Musicaltheatremum dsis knows she should be doing this she used to be a care home manager and she has advised friends about poa before and was very judgmental when a friend bought a £15 top for herself as a birthday present from her brother who she had poa for.

I guess she thinks either the rules don't apply to her or that she wouldn't get found out maybe she will get away with it we will see how the investigation goes.

Other than remove her as poa I am not sure what opg can do it's not like she can pay the money back anyway as she will have spent it and she's up to her eyes in debt and I doubt they can change dm will back but I want the truth out there she has turned family and friends even dm against me and dc with her lies i have no idea what she has been saying though as nobody has ever asked for my side of the story

They can involve the police, remover her as poa and dm can make s new will if she has capacity.

Sorry i didn't word that well i know they can involve the police I mean with regards to getting the money back and paying off the mortgage she's taken out on dm house. It makes me sad as dm has worked hard all her life been frugal paid her mortgage off 45 years ago when she was widowed and left with 2 young children using a property ddad had inherited and now at 84 all of her savings have gone and a mortgage on her house because of dsis

I think what happens next with the POA will depend on whether your mum is found to have capacity. If she doesn’t have capacity then I think someone (you?) needs to apply for deputyship from the courts.

I wonder if the mortgage company did their due diligence with regards to the re-mortgage?

Social services and the police closed the case as they said she had capacity but will see what the independent doctor says he is checking for capacity and If she is vulnerable being influenced manipulated etc which is what i believe dsis is doing as she's done it with me many times over the years to convince me to lend her money plus she has now isolated dm who is house bound and only has dsis

I don't understand how she was able to remortgage the house, have you still got a copy of the poa. If it was paid off 45years ago why did it need remortgaging

No I don't have a copy of poa. I don't know how she has managed to take out an equity release mortgage I knew she wanted to but I refused then she went nc with me. I saw the paperwork for the first attempt for the mortgage and contacted them to advise opg investigation going on and they stopped all contact with dsis. They told me dsis texted them pretending to be dm then admitted it was her and that she wanted the funds to tide her over. She has then done it through another company I got a notice from the land registry. She will have talked dm into it i presume

Equity release

Dm didn't need a mortgage and won't have seen a penny of the money or have benefited at all from it dsis had obviously used up dm money but wanted more dm told me dsis needed it for home improvements and holidays

How has a POA been used if she still has capacity? I thought they could only be used once incapacitated?

Financial poa can be used at anytime health I think has to be agreed that the person no longer has capacity. The poa has been registered with dm bank as far as I am aware

Finance poa can be used as soon as it's registered but mum would have needed to tick that box, the investigation will look at that and also see who were the witnesses and certificate provider.