GW, Re [2015] EWCOP 9

“I received a letter from the Office of the Public Guardian on the 24th September 2014 in regards to the management of my father’s affairs; my father being Mr GW. I would like to make it clear that I do not want to lose the power of attorney for my father’s affairs. I would also like to explain that I have carried out my duties and I knew nothing of this investigation until I received this letter so my opinions have not been considered and I have had no opportunity to express my views. It is claimed that my father owed a large sum of money to MK Council for care home fees. This is actually correct. On numerous occasions I have been in contact with MK Council and the various residential and care homes explaining that my father had no money until his home was sold. I also explained that this may take a while due to the condition of the house. At no point has anybody said this would be an issue. It took until July 2014 for me to sell his home, and I paid my father’s debts on the morning the sale was completed. The reason the sale took so long was because he has lived on his own since my mother died in 2001. My father was a very heavy smoker, and he was a serious compulsive hoarder. It was very hard to get the house maintained because he did not like people coming in. My father also really could not manage himself or the house on his own and in hindsight I think he should have gone into sheltered accommodation earlier. Thus the house fell into serious disrepair, was very dirty and most rooms were unenterable due to hoarding clutter. After that the house stood empty for many years and there was no money to renovate it. I spent two years time (and my own money) emptying, cleaning and repairing the house in order to sell it. There was not even any water or heating. I dropped the price of the house more and more and eventually sold it, only to be told it was too cheap, and I could be in trouble for not securing the best deal for my father. So I did more work to it and sold it again. My double garage is now full with my father’s belongings because I didn’t want to use his money for storage. Whilst working on my father’s house I purchased a car trailer using my money because it was costing me so much in skip hire. My father had no money. My father also owes me £10,000 over the years to pay for anything from car tyres, car repairs to paying bills. I have never taken this money back because he needed it more than I do and I presumed would be returned to me in his will. On the subject of his will, I was asked to supply a copy of, to the best of my knowledge there doesn’t appear to be a proper one. I did find various hand written notes, but the only wills were for my grandparents. I did write and tell Brenda Bond. I also wrote and said that at the time I did not think he had a pension. My father worked mostly abroad as a diplomat, so did not pay tax in the UK, and I know he did not have a private pension. Since then, I have discovered a small pension with a company called JMR, which no longer exists, although I am now in touch with the company which took them over. Another consideration to take into account is that I am married with five children, two with special needs, and I am a full time civil servant, so my time for house renovation has been restricted. My sister AW has been able to visit my father much more than me because she does not have a family and she works a lot less hours than I do. Due to this, AW has always looked after my father’s immediate needs, such as pocket money, cigarettes and toiletries. I still don’t know why, but she suddenly stopped doing this – without telling me – and I was not aware that he had run out of pocket money. As soon as I was aware, I took £200 of my money and bought him new toiletries and a whole new wardrobe of clothes. Like the last time he moved, I cleaned, decorated and fully furnished his new flat and financed it myself. I was hoping to finance some work by selling some items which my grandfather had left. This was until I discovered my father had given nearly everything of value to charity shops, including my grandfather’s antique gold Rolex! I am a little confused over a statement in the COP24, 10.7, where it states in paragraph 4.13 that “On the 8th September 2014 the local authority informed me a payment of £75,000 was received on 30th July 2014. The source of the fund is not known. The account is now in credit of £575.80.”

“I am writing to notify the court that Milton Keynes Council … believes a panel deputy should be invited to act as the donor’s deputy for property and affairs. Milton Keynes Council had previously indicated that, as a last resort, given that GW had no capital other than his former home, we would be prepared to act as deputy, however it is understood that the property has since been sold and Milton Keynes Council does not consider it is the appropriate body to manage the capital released by the sale.”

“On 14 November 2014 the Public Guardian received a copy of BW’s objection. BW stated he would like to remain as GW’s attorney. He claimed he was not aware of the investigation until he received a letter on 24 September 2014. … BW also confirmed he received a letter from me requesting him to comply with the Public Guardian’s investigation by providing financial accounts. He stated he had posted bank statements but they were returned to him six weeks later by Royal Mail. He then resent the package to me. I can confirm to date the OPG has not received this. On 25 November 2014, Milton Keynes Council informed the court that they would not be willing to manage GW’s financial affairs and thought a panel deputy should be invited. The Public Guardian is not aware how GW’s property and financial affairs have been managed by BW due to BW’s failure to comply with requests for documentary evidence for the OPG’s investigation. From the objection letter received from BW, the Public Guardian cannot verify if BW was aware of the investigation as he denied it but later admitted to posting bank statements to the OPG for the investigation. The Public Guardian wishes to pursue his application made on 2 October 2014 to revoke the Lasting Power of Attorney for property and affairs. The Public Guardian requests that in the best interests of GW a panel deputy is appointed.”

“Subsection (4) applies if the court is satisfied - (a) …. (b) that the donee (or, if more than one, any of them) of a lasting power of attorney – (i) has behaved, or is behaving, in a way that contravenes his authority or is not in P’s best interests, or (ii) proposes to behave in a way that would contravene his authority or would not be in P’s best interests.” (a) …. (b) that the donee (or, if more than one, any of them) of a lasting power of attorney – (i) has behaved, or is behaving, in a way that contravenes his authority or is not in P’s best interests, or (ii) proposes to behave in a way that would contravene his authority or would not be in P’s best interests.”

“The court may – (a) direct that an instrument purporting to create the lasting power of attorney is not to be registered, or (b) if P lacks capacity to do so, revoke the instrument or the lasting power of attorney.” (a) direct that an instrument purporting to create the lasting power of attorney is not to be registered, or (b) if P lacks capacity to do so, revoke the instrument or the lasting power of attorney.”

“The donor does not have the mental capacity to suspend or revoke the LPA. The donor is suffering from advanced Alzheimer’s disease. He is unable to respond meaningfully to any specific questions save sometimes to questions relating to specific day to day needs. When basic questions about his well-being were put, responses included the comments “You used to be so good” and “Things are climbing the walls”

“I again visited [the nursing home] and this time spoke to GW. He was very confused and could not tell me about his son, either his name, whether he visited him, or whether he dealt with his finances.”

“The Public Guardian requests the court’s permission to amend his COP1 application dated 2 October 2014 at 5.2 to substitute: “The court to invite a member of the panel of deputies to make an application for his or her appointment to make decisions on behalf of GW in relation to his property and financial affairs”.”