What is the difference between power of attorney and a will?

Full answer

It is a common misconception that a will can cover both end-of-life planning and incapacity planning -- in fact, a Lasting Power of Attorney and a will address two entirely separate situations, and neither can substitute for the other. **Lasting Power of Attorney -- for while you're alive** An LPA is a legal document that lets you appoint one or more trusted people (attorneys) to make decisions on your behalf if you become unable to make them yourself -- most commonly due to illness, injury, or a condition like dementia that affects mental capacity. There are two types: a property and financial affairs LPA (covering bank accounts, bills, property, investments) and a health and welfare LPA (covering medical treatment decisions and where you live). Crucially, an LPA only has legal effect while you are alive -- the moment you die, the attorney's authority ends completely, and the LPA becomes irrelevant. **A will -- for after you die** A will only takes legal effect after your death. It sets out who should inherit your estate (your money, property, and possessions), appoints executors to administer your estate, can name guardians for minor children, and can include specific gifts or instructions. A will has absolutely no effect while you are alive -- it cannot be used to help manage your finances or make decisions for you if you lose capacity; only an LPA can do that. **Why you generally need both** Without an LPA, if you lose mental capacity without one in place, your family cannot automatically step in to manage your finances or make decisions on your behalf -- instead, they would likely need to apply to the Court of Protection for a Deputyship Order, which is typically slower, more expensive, and more restrictive than having a pre-arranged LPA. Without a will, your estate is distributed according to the rigid rules of intestacy when you die, which may not match your actual wishes -- for example, unmarried partners have no automatic inheritance rights under intestacy, regardless of how long you lived together. **They must be set up while you have capacity** Both an LPA and a will require you to have sufficient mental capacity at the time you make them -- you cannot set up an LPA (or make a valid will) after you have already lost capacity, which is why financial and legal advisers consistently recommend arranging both well before they might be needed, not waiting until a health crisis makes it too late. **Cost and registration** An LPA costs £82 per document to register with the Office of the Public Guardian (so £164 if you set up both types), separate from any solicitor fees if you use one to help draft it, while will costs vary as described elsewhere but are a separate, unrelated process and fee. **Practical tip** Treat LPAs and a will as two separate, equally important pieces of planning -- ideally set both up at the same time, since many solicitors offer combined packages, and review both periodically as your circumstances (marriage, children, asset changes) evolve.

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