A Lasting Power of Attorney and a deputyship can both allow someone to make decisions for another person. However, they are used in very different circumstances.
The key difference is timing. A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) is normally made while you still have the mental capacity to choose who should act for you. Deputyship is usually needed after someone has lost mental capacity and can no longer put an LPA in place.
At AFG Law, our Private Client team can advise families about attorney and deputyship arrangements and what to do when someone can no longer manage their own affairs.
What is a Lasting Power of Attorney?
A Lasting Power of Attorney allows you to appoint one or more people as attorneys to make decisions on your behalf.
There are two types; a Property and Financial Affairs LPA and a Health and Welfare LPA.
A Property and Financial Affairs LPA can cover decisions about money, bank accounts, bills and property.
A Health and Welfare LPA covers decisions about matters such as care, medical treatment and where you live. It can only be used to make decisions when you lack capacity to make the particular decision yourself.
A Lasting Power of Attorney must be made while the person creating it has the required mental capacity. This makes it a way of planning ahead for the possibility of losing capacity in the future.
The Mental Capacity Act 2005 provides the legal basis governing LPAs and decision-making for people who lack capacity.
What happens if someone loses capacity without an LPA?
As we have discussed in previous articles, you cannot simply create an LPA for somebody after they have lost mental capacity. If a person lacks mental capacity to make an LPA and decisions need to be made about their finances, it may be necessary for somebody to apply to the Court of Protection.
This commonly happens following dementia, a stroke, serious illness or injury. A family member does not automatically gain authority over someone’s finances because they are their spouse, child or next of kin. Instead, a deputyship application may be required.
What is a deputyship?
A deputy is appointed by the Court of Protection to make specified decisions for someone who lacks capacity. The Court of Protection decides whether a deputy is required and what powers that person should have. If the application succeeds, a Deputyship Order sets out their authority.
Most deputyships concern property and financial affairs. A deputy could, for example, be authorised to manage bank accounts, pay bills or deal with property.
The Court can also appoint a health and welfare deputy, although these appointments are less common because the Court generally prefers decisions in this area to be made as they arise rather than granting wide ongoing powers.
What is the main difference between an attorney and a deputy?
The simplest way to understand the difference is to look at who chooses the person making the decisions. With an LPA, you choose your attorney yourself while you have capacity.
With deputyship, an application is made after you lose mental capacity, and the deputy is appointed by the Court of Protection.
A deputy therefore receives their authority from the Court rather than directly from the person whose affairs they will manage.
Are deputies supervised?
Yes; The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) supervises deputies appointed by the Court of Protection. Deputies are required to report to the OPG, normally each year, explaining the decisions they have made. A property and financial affairs deputy must also provide information about the person’s finances.
The deputy must act within the authority given by the Court and make decisions in the person’s best interests. This ongoing supervision is an important difference between deputyship and an LPA.
Is an LPA cheaper than deputyship?
Generally, making an LPA in advance is simpler and less expensive than requiring a deputyship application later.
From 17 November 2025, the fee payable to the Office of the Public Guardian is £92 for each type of Lasting Power of Attorney. If you register both types, the current registration fees are £184 in total, although reductions or exemptions can be available depending on financial circumstances.
Deputyship involves an application to the Court of Protection and can involve court fees, assessment of capacity, ongoing supervision and other costs.
Should I make a Lasting Power of Attorney now?
You do not need to wait until you are elderly or unwell to make a Lasting Power of Attorney. An LPA is designed to be put in place before it is needed. Once you lose mental capacity, it may be too late to make one.
Putting LPAs in place means you can choose who you trust to deal with your finances and make relevant decisions if you cannot do so yourself.
Without an LPA, your family may instead have to apply to the Court for Deputyship Orders, which gives the Court a much greater role in deciding who should act and what authority they should have.
How AFG Law can help
AFG Law’s Private Client team can help you prepare and register a Lasting Power of Attorney so that arrangements are in place if you later lose capacity.
If a family member has already lost mental capacity without an LPA, we can advise on making a deputyship application to the Court of Protection and the responsibilities involved once a deputy is appointed.
Contact AFG Law’s Private Client team for advice about LPAs, deputyship and planning for future loss of capacity.