Families are waiting more than five months for vital documents needed to care for loved ones.
Lasting Power of Attorney gives applicants the right to take over a vulnerable person’s finances and property if they become unable to manage them.
But a growing backlog dating back to the pandemic means pensioners fear losing capacity before their loved ones gain these important rights.
Families are now being told to wait up to 20 weeks — more than double the normal wait time.
The Office of the Public Guardian typically aims to process the forms within eight to ten weeks.
Lifeline: Lasting Power of Attorney gives applicants the right to take over a vulnerable person’s finances and property if they become unable to manage them
However, an increasing number of relatives are finding they need to secure these rights.
More than 88,600 requests are being registered each month — 67 pc more than during the pandemic. When asked, the Office of the Public Guardian refused to disclose how long it currently takes to process the average application.
Sheree Green, a solicitor at law firm Greenchurch, criticised it for putting families through unnecessary strife.
She says: ‘The wait time is very long and there’s a lot of hardship when people are waiting.
‘I have seen cases where the person has died before the claim has been processed. In other cases there are care home fees or debts that need to be paid but their loved ones cannot access their funds to cover the costs.’
Caroline Abrahams, of charity Age UK, urges the Government to act now to cut the waiting period.
She says: ‘Twenty weeks is a long wait and the backlog seems to date from the pandemic.’
The delays come after the pandemic slowed down the approval system, leaving thousands of families without the legal protections they need if a loved one becomes ill or incapacitated.
A Bill to modernise the application process is currently passing through Parliament and aims to allow claimants to register their details online, which the department suggests will speed up the process.
However, it may be some time before the Bill becomes law.
In the meantime, families can contact the OPG if their claim is urgent or apply for deputyship at the Court of Prosecution, which gives applicants the right to make some of the same decisions as a Power of Attorney.
A spokesman for the OPG says: ‘As a result of the extra staff we’ve hired to meet the unprecedented demand for LPAs, we are now registering 18,000 more every month than before the pandemic.’
- For more information visit: gov.uk/power-of-attorney or call 0300 456 0300.
