Power of attorney

[bumblebubble23]

i may be completely wrong here, I know nothing about this but.. my DH and SIL have put in a application to be power of attorney for their dad. He has end stage heart failure. They put things on the form like (which are true) confused and needs help medicating dressing showering forgets simple things unable to pay and keep on top of bills etc but today, I saw SIL and she said I’m letting my dad drive again as I’m too busy and if I can drop him at the pub and collect him he’s fine to drive. I just mentioned to her I’m unsure but I would check if he’s legal to drive as you will be power of attorney over health and finances in few weeks and will anything come back on you if he’s in an accident. Legally we are unsure if he is medically allowed to drive or not. But she said I’m not bothered.

POA only kicks in when a decision is being made that the person does not have capacity to make any more. If he has heart failure presumably there is no cognitive decline, so it’s up to him whether he drives or not.

You can check here https://www.gov.uk/health-conditions-and-driving/find-condition-a-to-z but it depends on whether his heart failure has any impact on his ability to drive.

Right, thanks for that I’ll have a look he has some sort of decline as he doesn’t remember things. I’m not sure if he could do an emergency stop but if it’s legal then 🙄 so does this mean power of attorney only kicks in when needed? Not all the time, one of the reasons they’re doing this is bill paying and confusion he had debt letters built up to his front door and couldn’t remember he had a huge amount of money in his bank account.

This isn’t true.

if you have concerns about his driving, you can make a report through the DVLA website.

As attorneys they can manage his money and make health and welfare decisions for him, if they have both types.

Health and welfare only kicks in when they don't have capacity.

Financial can be used with their agreement beforehand.

PoAs can only be made if the donor still has capacity.

I have been added as a 'trusted friend' to my parents bank account so I can pay bills without using POA. They gave also given written permission for me to speak to GP as needed.

Thanks for all replies, I’ve sent info on to SIL and she is looking into it now, and making a report through DVLA I think she’s was just confused this morning as no one medical has mentioned driving.

The donor, the dad, should apply. It’s easier this way. As long as he understands what he’s doing. Then they can be attorneys and sort out his finances. Regarding health, it’s useful when DP cannot make decisions about what happens next when they are not capable of making the decisions. So they might have dementia or you might make a decision for end of life care or an operation. So the donor should do both and it sounds like he could do both now.

If he can be persuaded to give up driving because he’s unsafe, he should come to this decision himself. Is he unsafe?

You should report the heart failure condition to the DVLA, and they will then investigate (GP details are given on the form).

Cognitive decline is common with end stage heart failure - my DM’s memory went downhill quickly with this condition, and she was unable to remember how to do simple tasks, including operating things like the microwave and stairlift. We had been trying to get her to stop driving before the diagnosis as she was not safe on the road, so fortunately the diagnosis meant that her licence was revoked.

If your FIL is struggling to manage day to day tasks without help then consider applying for attendance allowance.

Only a competent adult can apply for POA.

your DH and SIL can’t put it for it. It has to be done by their Dad. If he’s already confused it won’t be granted. It’s too late.

Again, not true.

he can be confused but still have capacity

They put things on the form like (which are true) confused and needs help medicating dressing showering forgets simple things unable to pay and keep on top of bills
You don't put any information like this on a POA form. It is just signed buy the person who it is for and the person having the POA with witnesses signatures that's all.

Agree. The bit in bold above sounds more like an Attendance Allowance form.

Yes. Doesn’t sound like POA. The elderly person should get it though. It’s not for others to do it.

The POA requires somebody independent to sign as the certificate provider, confirming that the applicant understands what they are signing and has capacity.

It does sound more like OP’s DH and SIL are applying for attendance allowance.

They have done both maybe I’m mixing them up