A lasting power of attorney has to be made while the person still has the mental capacity to make it. A dementia diagnosis does not remove that capacity on the day it is given. It does start a clock.
That is the whole problem in one sentence, and it is why this is the piece of admin families most often get wrong. Not through carelessness. Through waiting to be told it was time.
Nobody tells you it is time. You have to decide it is.
What happens if you leave it too late
If capacity has gone, an LPA can no longer be made. The alternative is applying to the Court of Protection for a deputyship, and the honest description of that route is that it is more expensive, slower and considerably more work.
Meanwhile the ordinary things stop working. The bank will not discuss the account. The energy supplier will not take an instruction. Care arrangements that need a signature stall.
We see the consequences of this more than any other piece of paperwork, and they are always the same: a family doing something difficult under time pressure that could have been done calmly eighteen months earlier.
The two LPAs, and why you usually need both
There are two, and GOV.UK is clear that you make a separate one for each.
Property and financial affairs. Banking, bills, benefits, and selling a house if it comes to that. You can choose whether attorneys may act as soon as it is registered, or only once capacity has gone.
Health and welfare. Care, treatment and where someone lives. This one can only be used once capacity has been lost.
Most families making one for a parent with dementia want both, because the financial one handles the year-to-year and the health one handles the decisions that arrive suddenly.
Registering costs £92 for one and £184 for both. There is a 50 per cent reduction if the person making it has income under £12,000 a year before tax, and an exemption on certain means-tested benefits.
Registration takes eight to ten weeks if there are no mistakes in the application. That timescale is the reason to start early rather than the reason to delay.
The conversation, which is the actual hard part
The paperwork is straightforward. Raising it is not.
What works, in our experience, is taking the personal sting out of it. This is not a document about someone's decline, it is a document almost every adult should have and most do not. Framing it as something the whole family is doing, rather than something being done to one person, changes the conversation completely.
It also helps to be specific about what it prevents rather than what it enables. Nobody warms to "in case you can't decide things". People do understand "so that nobody has to go to court to pay your gas bill".
And do it early enough that the person can genuinely choose their attorneys and say what they want. That is the point of it. Alzheimer's Society has good, plain guidance written for exactly this moment.
Where Harpenden families usually get stuck
Three places, consistently.
Assuming the GP has to certify capacity. An LPA needs a certificate provider, and for many families that is a solicitor or someone who has known the person well for two years. It does not automatically require a medical assessment, though where capacity is genuinely in question one is sensible.
Choosing attorneys badly. Appointing all three children jointly sounds fair and creates deadlock. How attorneys are appointed, jointly or jointly and severally, matters more than most people realise when it is being filled in.
Doing the financial one and not the health one, then discovering eighteen months later that the decision that actually mattered was a care one.
None of that is legal advice, and we are not solicitors. It is what we watch families run into. For anything about your own circumstances, use a solicitor.
Where this sits alongside care
Usually well before it.
Most families we support in Harpenden arrange the legal side while the person is still managing largely independently, and start care months or years later. Our guide to using a lasting power of attorney for care decisions covers the point where the two meet, and our advice page on lasting power of attorney sets out the mechanics in more detail.
We are an independent, family run provider registered with the Care Quality Commission, and our Harpenden team is on 01582 824 830 or [email protected].
Common Questions About Power of Attorney and Dementia
Can someone with dementia still make a lasting power of attorney?
Often, yes. A diagnosis does not by itself mean someone lacks the capacity to make an LPA, and capacity is decision-specific rather than all-or-nothing. What matters is whether the person can understand and weigh that particular decision at that particular time. It is a judgement for the certificate provider, and where there is real doubt a solicitor and sometimes a medical opinion are the right route.
How long does a lasting power of attorney take to register?
Eight to ten weeks if there are no mistakes in the application. Errors send it back and add months, which is one reason many families use a solicitor for it. Until it is registered it cannot be used, so the useful thing is to start well before anybody needs it.
Do we need both types of power of attorney?
Not legally, but most families with a dementia diagnosis in the picture end up wanting both. The property and financial affairs LPA handles the ordinary running of a life. The health and welfare LPA handles care and treatment decisions, and it can only be used once capacity has been lost, which is precisely when it is needed.
Where to start
Pick a date in the next month and put it in the diary as the day you raise it.
That sounds trivial. It is the single thing that separates the families who get this done from the families who tell us they wish they had. The document is not hard. Starting the conversation is, and it does not get easier by waiting.
Nothing here is legal advice, and we are a care provider rather than a law firm. For your own situation, speak to a solicitor. If it helps to talk through how the care side fits around it, our Harpenden line is 01582 824 830.
Fees, timescales and LPA types checked on 2 September 2026 against GOV.UK, linked above. Fees and processes change; check the current position before relying on a figure.
If capacity has already gone and no power of attorney exists, the route is a court application instead. Our guide to applying for deputyship in Harpenden sets out what that involves, what it costs and how long it takes.
Arranging Care Is Simple
Starting care can feel like a big step. We keep it calm and straightforward, and we are here to guide you from your very first call.
1. Talk to us
Get in touch by phone or request a callback. We will listen, answer your questions and help you understand the options, so you can decide what feels right in your own time.
2. A home visit and initial consultation
We arrange a visit to understand your routines, your home and what matters most to you. Together we agree an initial consultation and shape the support that feels right.
3. Your care begins
A small, familiar team starts your care, arriving at the agreed times and staying involved as your needs change. We remain your trusted adviser throughout.
Whenever you are ready, we are here to help.