Jo and Mark's son Ben has autism and a severe learning disability. For 18 years they'd made every decision about his health, his school and his money. A week after his 18th birthday, they took him to the GP.
"The receptionist asked if we had a power of attorney or deputyship," Jo says. "I didn't know what she meant. I'm his mum."
What they discovered
- Parental responsibility had ended on Ben's birthday.
- Ben couldn't make a lasting power of attorney, because he couldn't understand what it meant.
- His Child Trust Fund, built up over 18 years, now belonged to him, and the provider couldn't release it to his parents.
- Their own wills left everything equally to Ben and his sister, outright. An inheritance could have affected Ben's benefits and care.
Putting it right
Jo and Mark applied to the Court of Protection to become Ben's property and affairs deputies. They became his DWP appointee for benefits. And they rewrote their wills to leave Ben's share in a trust, with his sister as one of the trustees.
"Nobody told us," Mark says. "If we'd known, we'd have started a year earlier."
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Request a call back
Tell us a little about your situation and we'll call you, usually within one working day, to understand what you need. If it would help, we'll then put you in touch with a specialist, such as a solicitor who deals with wills and powers of attorney. We'll always tell you who they are before passing on your details. We don't give advice ourselves, and there's no obligation.