What should you do on becoming a property and affairs deputy?

The role of a deputy for a person’s property and financial affairs is an important role, and one which means you have the responsibility of making financial decisions on behalf of an incapacitated person.

This can be a daunting task and so it's important to have a checklist at the outset of becoming a deputy as to what you need to do, and how to best achieve this.

The Office of the Public Guardian (the OPG) – whose role it is to make sure deputies are acting in a person’s best interests – have prepared a helpful guide setting out the key steps a deputy should take at the outset of their role: 

1. Making sure you know enough about who you're making decisions for 

It's essential that you understand both the person you're acting for, as well as what they own. Your decisions will need to make sense in the context of the person’s property and their wider finances, and the OPG will need to see that your decisions are always in the person’s best interests. 

You can consult their friends and relatives, and look to the kind of decisions the person makes if they sometimes have capacity to do so for themselves (for instance, if they have fluctuating capacity), or decisions they've made in the past if they previously had mental capacity. 

2. Arranging your security bond (if required) 

The Court of Protection will let you know if you need to pay a security bond from the person’s funds before they send the deputy order. They will decide how much this is.

This is ordinarily obtained to protect the incapacitated person’s estate in case you don't comply with your duties as a deputy.  

3. Reviewing your court order 

Your court order will contain essential information about the decisions that you're able to make under your deputyship. 

You must review this carefully, check for errors, and contact the Court of Protection immediately if you spot any. You may need to fill out a COP9 form if you spot a serious error, and you must make sure this is sent to the Court of Protection within 21 days of the order being sent to you to avoid being charged for another application.  

4. Telling people you’re acting as deputy 

Specific individuals and organisations will need to know that you're now acting as deputy, such as:

1. The Department for Work and Pensions – for state pension or any benefits the incapacitated person qualifies for
2. Any banks, building societies, life assurance companies etc
3. The payer of any private pension(s)
4. The solicitor who holds the incapacitated person’s will and/or property deeds
5. The incapacitated person’s care or nursing home if appropriate
6. The local authority – for housing benefit or help with any fees

As part of this process, financial bodies will require an original, sealed copy of the deputy order and proof of your name and address, as well as those of the person under the deputyship. 

5. Securing the person’s assets, and considering whether separate account(s) are needed  

You'll need to make a list of what's in the person’s estate once you have: (i) access to their accounts; (ii) details of their sources of income; and (iii) information about their assets. 

You must also cancel any payments that are no longer needed, and pay any bills that are outstanding.

You should consider whether separate account(s) would be helpful to keep your money and that of the person under the deputyship separate so as to avoid confusing their finances with your own.

6. Paying deputy fees 

Fees to the OPG are paid out of the person’s estate, and include:

• A £100 one-off assessment fee
• A £320 annual supervision fee (sometimes reduced to £35 after a year for estates that are under £21,000 and do not require close supervision) 

Supervision fees are billed towards the end of the financial year, in April. In your first year as a deputy, this will be proportionately reduced so you only pay for the proportion of the year in which you've actually been acting as a deputy. 

7. Keeping a record of your decisions and transactions

It's one of your legal duties as a deputy to keep financial records, and these form part of an annual deputy report that you'll have to submit to the OPG.  

You'll need to note on this report where you've consulted anyone else in making a financial decision, and you could be asked to submit documents such as receipts, invoices and bank statements, so keep copies and records of all of this where you can.  

8. Submitting your online deputy report 

The OPG requires submission of this report at the end of each year of the deputyship (although this could be requested for a shorter period).

This report is used for the purpose of monitoring how the person’s funds are being spent and whether this is in the best interests of the incapacitated person.

In particular, the report should include information such as:

1. Significant financial decisions you've made on behalf of that person
2. How you've involved that person (if possible) in decision-making
3. The details of the money the person has received during the year
4. The payments made on their behalf
5. The current value of the person’s assets and investments.

If you don't submit this, the OPG will review the deputyship which could result in your removal as a deputy.

If you do have any questions in respect of being appointed or acting as a deputy, then please don't hesitate to contact our estate, trust and will disputes team.