An EPA for personal care and welfare comes into effect when the donor - the person who created the EPA - is deemed incapable of acting for themselves.

For an EPA for property, the donor can choose when this comes into effect - either immediately (while they are mentally capable) or at a point in time when they are deemed incapable.

Ordinary powers of attorney are best used for temporary purposes – for example, if you’re going overseas and want someone to be able to send you cash from your accounts or to pay bills here. Ordinary powers of attorney stop being effective if the donor loses capacity.

EPAs are made while the Donor has mental capacity and continue to be effective after the Donor loses capacity. At Public Trust, we only prepare enduring powers of attorney.

No, but the the EPA document does need to be witnessed by an authorised witness such as a lawyer or an authorised Public Trust employee and the same authorised witness must also sign a certificate to accompany the EPA documents. Public Trust can help with ensuring your EPA contains everything required to protect your legacy.

Yes! You can prepare an enduring power of attorney yourself via our online platform. It's easy to use and doesn't take long. You will need to visit us in person to complete the process. Of course, if you prefer to have expert help, we can also prepare your EPA for you.

You need to think carefully about who to choose as an attorney and ensure they understand their role and responsibilities. There are different responsibilities for the two types of EPA - see our pages on each for more detail.

You can decide when an EPA for property comes into effect and can add special terms and conditions. You can also state who you want your attorney to report to and consult with when making decisions on your behalf, or place restrictions on their authority.

If the donor is mentally capable, they can revoke an EPA or an attorney’s appointment at any time by written notice.

No, spouses don't automatically have enduring powers of attorney. That's why we recommend (if you decide your spouse is the right person for this) appointing them legally by making an EPA.

A personal care and welfare attorney can deal with personal care and welfare matters once a medical certificate is obtained from a doctor to confirm that the donor is incapable of acting for themselves.

When the authority is used, the attorney will need to provide a certified copy of the EPA together with a certificate of non-revocation (which declares that the donor is alive and has not withdrawn the appointment) to any institution or agency the attorney is dealing with.

For a property EPA, the donor gets to elect in the EPA document if they want the property attorneys to act jointly, severally or jointly and severally. The attorneys can be an individual, multiple individuals or a trustee company like Public Trust.

For an EPA for personal care and welfare, the donor can only appoint one person at a time to be the personal care and welfare attorney but can appoint back up attorneys.