Using a power of attorney

As a reminder, a power of attorney is a legal document. It lets you (the 'attorney') make decisions with or on behalf of someone else (the ‘donor’). 

When you agree to act as an attorney, you agree to always make decisions in the best interests of the donor. And you can only act in ways they have set out in the document. For example, you may only have permission to manage a current account, but not investments.

Once you’ve registered a power of attorney with us, you can manage the donor’s accounts in branch or at a cash machine. And in some cases, we can give you online access to their accounts using the Internet Bank.

However you choose to bank, you must always act in line with the power of attorney document.

As an attorney, you can make payments and transfers in branch. You can also manage regular payments like standing orders. 

If the account holder no longer needs their card (for example, if they’re no longer able to manage money themselves), we may be able to offer you a card for their account. So, you can make withdrawals at a cash machine – without having to come into branch. 

You can call us to ask us any questions about the accounts you’re managing. But you cannot use telephone banking to make transactions. And we cannot give you access to anyone else’s accounts using our mobile Banking app yet. 

It’s up to the donor (the person you’re supporting) to decide what you can and cannot do on their behalf. And you must always need to act in line with the donor’s wishes that they’ve set out in the document. 

The simplest way to change a GPA is for the donor to create a new document. It’s a good idea to write ‘cancelled’ or ‘revoked’ on the existing document before creating a new one. 

If the donor creates a new document, they'll need to let us know in writing. Then we can cancel or change the attorney's access between 10 to 15 working days.

As long as the donor has mental capacity, they can make changes to or end an LPA using a deed of revocation. 

To add another attorney or end their LPA, the donor must ‘revoke’ the existing document. Then complete and register a new LPA. 

As an attorney, you can only make changes to personal details once the power of attorney is in use. Or you can choose to resign as an attorney altogether. 

To make changes to an LPA, contact the registration agency. For example, in England and Wales, you would contact the Office of the Public Guardian.

All attorneys must act in line with the power of attorney as it is a legal document.

If you have any concerns about the way an attorney is acting, contact the registration agency.  

For example, in England and Wales, you should contact the Office of the Public Guardian. They’re responsible for monitoring lasting and enduring powers of attorney. And they have the power to investigate and remove an attorney who is not acting responsibly.

When a power of attorney ends depends on which type of document you have. Once a power of attorney ends, we’ll need to know in writing. 

The donor can decide a specific time when a GPA will end. Or it may end if either the donor or attorney lose mental capacity. This means it will end if they become unable to make decisions. 

An LPA will generally only end once the donor dies.

If there is no suitable replacement attorney, an LPA may also end if the attorney:

• is responsible for managing money but becomes bankrupt or subject to a Debt Relief Order
• passes away
• loses mental capacity.