When my mother started to lose capacity, she is now 95 and happy if dotty, we had a conference with her GP. His strong advice was to get the LPA in place at the earliest opportunity. I now manage the finances and after sorting out the details with the bank, NS&I etc all works smoothly. I shut down credit cards, phone accounts etc to make things as simple as possible. I pay bills etc usually from my account or credit card if not paid by bank transfer from her bank.
All the details are noted and my brother and brother in law, who holds LPA with me, are notified of transactions. If they incur expenses similarly they advise others. That way managing things is made easier and financial transparency and trust is maintained. There are horror stories of swindling relatives, thankfully not the case with our transparent approach.
My advice is to do it ASAP if it might be necessary and keep an audit trail particularly if there are potential grasping relatives in the offing.
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