Power of attorney paralysed the family finances

SIR – I have been caring for my wife, who is suffering from semantic dementia, for nearly 10 years and have now discovered that a lasting power of attorney (LPA) is useless when it comes to dealing with my family’s finances.

I would like – and I know that my wife would concur – to assist our two daughters with the purchase of properties for their families. To that end I have sought to obtain a mortgage on my unencumbered property, but it seems that I am prevented from signing the mortgage document on my wife’s behalf, as she will not benefit from the proceeds.

I telephoned the Court of Protection and was informed that on payment of a court fee of £400 I could apply for permission to sign on my wife’s behalf. What I was not told at the time was that I would be required to employ the Official Solicitor and meet his/her fees of between £190-£300 per hour. The Official Solicitor then requested additional documentation, despite my having submitted such information at the time of registering of the LPA.

I was further informed that I must notify my wife that the Official Solicitor had been appointed as litigation friend – this despite my wife being unable to comprehend the meaning of very basic words, let alone “litigation”.

What appeared, at first, to be a very straightforward request had become a major, complicated and costly process with no clear evidence of a positive outcome. I decided not to proceed, but despite my request the Court of Protection has not returned my court fee. It now seems that, as head of the household, everything has been taken out of my hands.

I do not believe that families who are affected by family mental health problems should suffer legal consequences when we have taken what we thought were proper precautions to safeguard our control over family finances. Roger Howard

Southampton