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Power of Attorney Refunds

Here's How to Claim

Power of Attorney Refunds Available

If you paid £110 to register your Lasting Power of Attorney between 1st April 2013 and 31st March 2017, you are entitled to a refund of up to £54.

The Office of the Public Guardian has pledged to give a partial refund to users of its service, in an extension of its 2017 cut in registration fees.

As regular readers of this blog will know, Lasting Powers of Attorney are a powerful safeguard for retaining control of your finances and major life decisions if your mental capacity is ever lost or impaired. You can protect yourself against a host of future problems by making and registering a Lasting Power of Attorney for Health & Welfare and/or a Lasting Power of Attorney for Property & Financial Affairs.

Until 31st March 2017, the Office of the Public Guardian charged a fee of £110 to register every Lasting Power of Attorney. But from 1st April 2017, the fee was reduced to £82.

The fee reduction was introduced because the cost of running the Office of the Public Guardian came down. As the registration fee was only ever intended to cover operating costs, the saving was initially passed on to us, the public, by way of a lower registration fee. But, because the savings have been felt as far back as 2013, the benefits are now being extended to people who have already paid the higher fee.  

How much can you get back?

That depends on when you paid to register your Power of Attorney.

  • If you registered between April 2013 and September 2013, your refund will be £54.
  • If registration took place between October 2013 and March 2014, you get £34 back.
  • If you registered between April 2014 and March 2015, you’re owned £37.
  • For registrations between April 2015 and March 2016, the refund is £38.
  • And for registrations that took place between April 2016 and March 2017, the amount due is £45.

The amounts vary to reflect the amount by which fee income exceeded operating costs in each year. A modest rate of interest of 0.5% is also factored in.

Bear in mind, though, that if you paid a reduced fee because your income was below £12,000, your refund will be smaller. And if you were exempt from paying a registration fee because of receiving certain means-tested benefits, you won’t be eligible for a refund.

How to claim a refund

To be eligible to claim, you must either be the Donor – the person who made the Power of Attorney – or the Attorney – the person nominated to make decisions if the Donor loses mental capacity. Whoever applies, however, the refund will only go to the Donor.

If you’re applying on behalf of a Donor who has died, you will need their Grant of Representation from the Probate Office, their Death Certificate, or their Will.

You must apply for your refund in person, and you can do it over the phone or online.

To claim over the phone, call the Office of the Public Guardian on 0300 456 0300 and choose Option 6.

To apply online, follow this link to the page that’s been specially set up on the government website to handle refunds.

You won’t need to have the Power of Attorney in front of you, because the Office of the Public Guardian will be able to trace it easily on their register. But you will need to give the following information: -

  • The name, address and date of birth of the Donor;
  • The Donor’s bank details – their sort code and account number – it must be a UK bank account if you’re applying online. If you don't have one, you’ll need to apply by phone.
  • The details of at least one of the Attorneys named on the Power of Attorney

If you’ve registered more than one Lasting Power of Attorney, you don't need to make multiple claims for a refund. It can all be done in one claim. Once you’ve claimed, it will take up to twelve weeks for the money to come back to you.

If you’re applying on behalf of someone who’s died, you’ll be asked first to email the Grant, Death Certificate or Will to poarefunds@justice.gsi.gov.uk, or post them to POA Refunds Team, 7th floor, Office of the Public Guardian. PO Box 16185, Birmingham, B2 2WH. The refunds team will then call you to get the application underway.

If you get stuck, give us a call on 0151 601 5399, or fill in the enquiry form below, and we’ll be happy to give you a hand, it’s all part of the service.

"Recent life events brought home to me the importance of making sure that my beautiful grown up daughter, who is my pride and joy, is well provided for. After a very in-depth consultation, during which my circumstances were considered from all angles, a carefully tailored estate plan was prepared for me, which addressed all my concerns fully. As a result, I am now confident and reassured that my assets are safe from erosion and that my daughter’s future is secure."

Kim D

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