i have just been given power of attorney over my father , his grandson is 45 and been living with my father rent free bill free all his life, my father has been in a home for over a year and the grandson has been using my fathers bank card, there is a police investigation due to over 10 thousand pound being stolen from my fathers account the outcome of this investigation is near , but my question is , i have asked the grandson for the spare set of keys for the house as i need access to the house paper work ect but he has refused to hand the keys over to me , i want to do this the correct way , what can i do ?

I know what I would be doing if I was in your situation. Changing the locks, you have power of Attorney, you have asked for spare set of keys and these are not forthcomng, so simply change the locks, then the grandson will have to negotiate with you for access to the house.

I could be wrong, but I am sure you can this because of the PoA

Is it an EPA or a LPA? (If it has 'just been given' it will be a LPA, unless it was an EPA from before October 2007 and by 'just been given' you mean its powers have been activated by registration).

If an LPA is it for 'property & financial affairs' [LPA(PFA)] ? Or for 'Health & Welfare) [LPA(HW)] or for both?

You can't go down the locksmith route if it is exclusively a LPA(HW), as you have no power over property.

Are you the sole attorney?. If not must you act 'jointly' (all the attorneys must agree) or 'jointly and severally' (where you can act alone but it would be wise to inform the other attorneys).

Is your father still competent to make their own decisions?

If so, what are their wishes?

If no longer competent and you can show taking action is in their best interests : Let the grandson know you'll gain entry using a locksmith if they don't give you a key.

If you are headed down this route and are concerned they may destroy paperwork if forewarned : just get the locksmith & gain entry, but it may make your relationship with the grandson worse (although it might already be a difficult relationship!).

Fit a new lock (but make arrangements for the grandson to have a key : if you want to get them evicted you'll need to do so lawfully, not by just changing the locks!)

You may need to show the locksmith the power of attorney / demonstrate you are entitled to make entry into the house.

I know what I would be doing if I was in your situation. Changing the locks, you have power of Attorney, you have asked for spare set of keys and these are not forthcomng, so simply change the locks, then the grandson will have to negotiate with you for access to the house.

 

I could be wrong, but I am sure you can this because of the PoA

It isn't quite that simple.

It depends which Power of Attorney has been given (for example, a LPA(HW) gives no power over property .........), if that power has been registered, and if the donor remains competent, if a 'sole attorney' or if a 'joint attorney' if is is just 'joint' or 'joint and severally'

If things may get contentious with the grandson, the OP will want to be sure they are acting lawfully. Otherwise the grandson may try to get the attorney removed!

Even if the OP is able to act, if the grandson has been living there for many years, they'd need to be lawfully evicted rather than 'just changing the locks and not giving them a key'!

Are you the sole attorney?. If not must you act 'jointly' (all the attorneys must agree) or 'jointly and severally' (where you can act alone but it would be wise to inform the other attorneys).

To clarify: if not sole attorney, the PoA will state "joint" or "joint and several", and if exclusively 'joint' then all the attorneys must agree any decision for that decision to be valid.

TY for the clarification. I was assuming that it was sole PoA and of course the grandson would be given a new set of keys when the locks had been changed.

sorry i am not very good online but its sole LPA just me named ,

its sole LPA with just me named , and my father wants me to have the keys to the house to get paperwork to renew house insurance pay bills ect

the police rang me today and i need to make a statement with regards to the missing money, he said the police can do nothing as its a civil matter however he did say he would contact the grandson to ask why he will not give us a spare set of keys , so fingers crossed , i will keep everyone informed thank you all for your help , maybe i will have to go down the changing the locks route if he still does not give me a spare set of keys

the police rang me today and i need to make a statement with regards to the missing money, he said the police can do nothing as its a civil matter

It might be a civil matter. It depends if a crime (theft, or fraud by false representation) has occurred, and if there is reasonable chance of a successful prosecution.

What I can't tally is why they want a statement if they have made a final decision that it is a civil matter .......

Surely, civil matter : no police statement needed, statement needed only if it might still be a criminal case!.

they want a statement from me about the money going missing and they will soon be making a arrest, i then asked the police if they could help about the keys they say thats the civil matter not the money going missing . sorry if i was not to clear !!!

I know what I would be doing if I was in your situation. Changing the locks

Me too in this situation. You are required to act in your father's best interest and as the police are already involved in a possible theft you could be seen to be failing in that duty if you don't act promptly to secure his assets. Get a locksmith, gain entry and get the locks changed. You can get locks which only designated people can get keys cut for. They do cost but it would mean you could hand the grandson a set of keys secure in the knowledge they'll remain the only set other than yours.

As well as making sure you have all bank cards etc. check to see the grandson hasn't set up internet banking. It's all too easy to do and he'll be able to continue helping himself if he's done so.

its sole LPA with just me named , and my father wants me to have the keys to the house to get paperwork to renew house insurance pay bills ect

If your father remains competent, you can just follow his wishes.

If you father has lost competence, then the LPA takes effect, (and isn't simple for the grandson to get revoked, if he were so minded).

However, which sort of LPA it is (PFA, HW, or both) is still important : it'd have to be PFA or both for you to act over property and financial affairs.

If it is just 'Health and well-being' you'd first need to be appointed as a deputy by the Court to be able to deal with financial or property matters (a deputy is like an attorney but appointed by the court once someone no longer has competence to appoint an attorney).