Delegate authority to act on your behalf to another person using one of these power of attorney templates. Powers can be as general or specific as you wish, from on-going and complete control of your money and possessions, to power for a specific task for a limited time.
Our collection of (PoA) forms includes ones customised for specific, common uses. Each document is in a format designed to be acceptable to any third party to whom it is presented.
Use this template to delegate authority to someone else to act on your behalf, usually for a short and specified period of time.
The powers you grant could be related to any task. You can also specify the limitation on the matters, extent of the power to be exercised and the period of time you wish the power to last.
Use this document to give authority to someone else to sell a house, a flat or land that you own on your behalf.
Talk to us about We are happy to answer any questions you have. Arrange for us to call you.
If the document isn’t right for your circumstances for any reason, just tell us and we’ll refund you in full immediately.
We avoid legal terminology unless necessary. Plain English makes our documents easy to understand, easy to edit and more likely to be accepted.
You don’t need legal knowledge to use our documents. We explain what to edit and how in the guidance notes included at the end of the document.
Email us with questions about editing your document. Use our Lawyer Assist service if you’d like our legal team to check your document will do as you intend.
Our documents comply with the latest relevant law. Our lawyers regularly review how new law affects each document in our library.
These documents create an ordinary power of attorney (abbreviated to PoA). They are suitable to use where you grant powers for a short and specified period of time. Each document records the terms of delegation - legal authority for someone else to take decisions on your behalf.
As the giver you become the donor of the power and the receiver becomes your attorney. The actions that your attorney may take on your behalf can be as general or specific as you like and may relate to one part or all of your affairs.
You can appoint anyone to be your attorney such as a family member of friend. It doesn't have to be a lawyer. The word 'attorney' simply means someone who can take decisions for you. In the past, you would delegate decisions about legal matters to your lawyer, who would become your 'attorney at law'.
With these templates, you have complete flexibility as to who to nominate as your attorney, the powers that you delegate and how they should be used, and the time period during which the powers last. You can also specify the matters you don’t want the attorney to have power over.
It is a good idea to discuss the extent of the power with your attorney in advance. Doing so will give them the opportunity to ask questions about your instructions and let you make clear exactly what you would like them to do. If you do, make sure what you have agreed is included in the document.
In order for your PoA document to be valid, these conditions must be met:
You can only grant the power of attorney to do things that you already have the right and capacity to do yourself.
You do not have to register a general power of attorney with anyone or any organisation. A document has binding effect once signed (or otherwise, if you say so in the document).It relies on law contained in the Powers of Attorney Act 1971.
You are abroad but need someone to manage your financial and legal affairs at home (such as buying or selling property).
You want to allow someone to perform a specific task on your behalf on a regular basis (such paying your bills in your name from your bank account each month or collecting a pension).
You want to allow someone with greater knowledge of a subject to make decisions on your behalf.
You should not confuse a general power of attorney with a Lasting Power of Attorney (abbreviated to LPA) or an Enduring Power of Attorney (abbreviated to EPA).
An LPA is made in anticipation of a person losing mental capacity and becoming permanently unable to handle their own affairs.
Since October 2007, LPAs have replaced EPAs. No new EPA can be created and it is recommended that existing ones are replaced with LPAs.
Because a donor is unable to renounce an LPA once mental capacity has been lost, there are special rules for making an LPA that do not apply to ordinary power of attorney forms, such as having a 'certificate provider' witness the parties signing, and registration at the Office of the Public Guardian.
There are two types of LPA: one for Health and Welfare and the other for Property and Financial affairs. You can choose to make one or both. The reason that they are separate forms is so that you can nominate different attorneys for each subject.
Making the Lasting Powers of Attorney documents is a practical matter, much as making a Will is. They are not just for old age. You might not expect to lose mental capacity anytime soon, but accidents can happen and without these documents, providing the right care for the remainder of your life might be difficult. Simply being a family member (even a wife, husband or civil partner) does not confer automatic legal rights that could help you if you lose mental capacity and cannot make your own decisions.
You can read more about different types of power of attorney.
We also have a free online LPA service that allows you to make both types of lasting power of attorney forms.
