What If I Don’t Trust Anyone Enough for an LPA?

Written by James Tyrrell · Reviewed by Anthony Dalton · Last reviewed 11 April 2026

If you don’t trust anyone enough to give them power of attorney, you can use built-in safeguards — joint attorneys, binding restrictions, notification systems — and professional alternatives to protect yourself. The bigger risk is doing nothing: without an LPA, the Court of Protection will appoint someone you definitely did not choose, and you will have no say in the matter.

Why Trust Concerns Are Completely Normal

Feeling uneasy about handing someone legal authority over your finances or health decisions is not a sign that something is wrong with you. It is a sign that you are taking this seriously. An LPA is one of the most significant legal documents you can create, and being cautious about who you appoint is exactly the right instinct.

The problem is when that caution turns into inaction. Many people convince themselves they will sort it out later, or that they do not need one yet. But an LPA can only be created while you have mental capacity. If an accident, stroke, or illness takes that away before you have acted, the window closes permanently.

The good news is that the law provides multiple ways to manage your trust concerns without abandoning the idea of an LPA altogether.

What Happens If You Do Nothing

This is the part most people do not think about carefully enough. If you lose mental capacity without an LPA, your family cannot simply step in. Your bank accounts may be frozen. No one can pay your bills, manage your pension, or sell your home to fund care. Medical teams will make treatment decisions without knowing your wishes.

The only option at that point is for someone to apply to the Court of Protection for a deputyship order. A judge then decides who manages your affairs. That person might be a family member you would not have chosen, a local authority officer, or a professional deputy you have never met. The application costs over £1,000, takes months, and the deputy faces ongoing annual supervision fees.

Put bluntly: avoiding an LPA because you do not trust anyone means handing control to a system where you have zero input. Our guide on what happens without an LPA explains the full consequences.

Safeguards Built Into Every LPA

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 does not simply hand power to an attorney and hope for the best. There are several layers of legal protection that apply to every registered LPA:

• Best interests duty — your attorney is legally required to act in your best interests at all times, not their own
• Certificate provider — an independent person (a professional or someone who has known you for at least two years) must confirm you understand the LPA and are not being pressured into creating it
• OPG oversight — the Office of the Public Guardian registers all LPAs and can investigate any concerns about attorney behaviour
• Notification system — you can name up to five “people to notify” when your LPA is registered, giving them a chance to raise objections
• Court of Protection powers — if an attorney is found to be acting improperly, the court can remove them and appoint someone else

These safeguards exist precisely because lawmakers understood that trust is a concern. They do not eliminate risk entirely — no legal document can — but they create accountability that simply does not exist when someone acts informally without legal authority.

Using Joint Attorneys to Prevent Abuse

One of the most effective ways to address trust concerns is to appoint multiple attorneys who must act jointly. This means every decision requires all of your attorneys to agree. No single person can access your bank account, sell your property, or make a care decision without the others signing off.

For example, you might appoint your daughter and your nephew as joint attorneys. Neither can act alone. If one tries to do something questionable, the other has an effective veto. This creates a natural check-and-balance system.

There is a trade-off, though. Joint attorneys must agree on everything, which can slow things down for routine tasks like paying utility bills. If one attorney becomes unavailable — through illness, death, or simply being on holiday — none of them can act. That is why naming a replacement attorney is essential with joint appointments.

The alternative is joint and several, where each attorney can act independently. This is more practical for day-to-day matters but does not provide the same level of mutual oversight. Some people use a hybrid approach — joint for major decisions (like selling property) and several for everyday finances.

Adding Restrictions and Instructions to Your LPA

Your LPA is not a blank cheque. You can include legally binding instructions that limit what your attorney is allowed to do. These are enforceable — your attorney must follow them or risk being investigated and removed.

Here are some practical examples of restrictions people add:

• Property sales — “My attorney must not sell my home unless a qualified surveyor confirms it is necessary to fund my care”
• Spending limits — “My attorney must not make any single payment over £5,000 without written agreement from my replacement attorney”
• Gift restrictions — “My attorney must not make any gifts from my estate beyond birthday and seasonal gifts of up to £100 per person”
• Record-keeping — “My attorney must keep a written record of all financial transactions and make this available to [named person] on request”
• Professional advice — “My attorney must seek professional financial advice before making any investment decisions”

You can also add preferences — these are wishes rather than binding instructions, but they guide your attorney’s decisions. For example: “I would prefer to stay in my own home for as long as possible” or “I would like my attorney to consult my sister before making major healthcare decisions.” Our guide on adding preferences and instructions covers this in detail.

Naming People to Notify

When you create your LPA, you can name up to five “people to notify.” These are individuals who will be contacted by the Office of the Public Guardian when your LPA is registered. Their role is to act as an early warning system — if they have concerns about the LPA or the people you have chosen, they can object before the LPA takes effect.

This is particularly useful if you have mixed feelings about your attorney choices. Naming a trusted friend, a family member who is not an attorney, or even your GP as a person to notify creates an additional layer of oversight. They cannot block the LPA on a whim — they need legitimate grounds — but their involvement means your attorney knows that someone independent is watching.

Worth knowing: the people you notify do not need to be involved in day-to-day decisions. They are simply informed that the LPA has been registered and given the chance to raise any concerns.

Professional Attorneys and Trust Corporations

If your trust concerns are specifically about family and friends, a professional attorney removes that personal element entirely. Solicitors, accountants, and other regulated professionals can act as your attorney and are legally bound to act in your best interests.

Professional attorneys bring several advantages for people with trust concerns:

• No personal agenda — a solicitor has no interest in your inheritance or family dynamics
• Regulatory oversight — solicitors are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, adding another layer of accountability beyond the OPG
• Professional indemnity insurance — if a professional attorney makes a mistake or acts improperly, you have an additional route to compensation
• Record-keeping — professionals maintain detailed records as standard, making their actions transparent and auditable

A trust corporation takes this a step further. Because it is an organisation rather than an individual, it offers continuity — it will not retire, fall ill, or move away. Trust corporations are typically departments within banks, law firms, or specialist trust companies.

The comparison below summarises the key differences:

The main downside is cost. Professional attorneys and trust corporations charge fees from your estate. But for people whose primary barrier to creating an LPA is trust, this is often a price worth paying for peace of mind.

Designing Your LPA for Maximum Protection

If you want to create an LPA but remain cautious about trust, here is a practical approach that combines several safeguards:

This layered approach means that even if one safeguard is not perfect, the others provide backup. No system is foolproof, but an LPA designed this way gives you far more control than leaving things to chance. Our guide on choosing the right attorney covers the qualities to look for when making your decision.

Can You Remove an Attorney If Things Go Wrong?

Yes. While you still have mental capacity, you can revoke your LPA at any time and for any reason. You do not need to explain yourself. You can create a new LPA with a different attorney if your circumstances or feelings change.

If you have already lost capacity, the situation is different but protections still exist. Anyone — a family member, friend, carer, or social worker — can raise concerns with the OPG about an attorney’s behaviour. The OPG has the power to investigate, and the Court of Protection can remove an attorney who is acting improperly, negligently, or against your best interests.

In practice, the oversight system is not passive. The OPG actively investigates complaints and takes enforcement action where necessary. Knowing this can help ease the concern that once you appoint someone, you are stuck with them forever.

The Real Risk Is Not Having an LPA

It is worth stepping back and looking at this from a different angle. The fear behind not trusting anyone is usually about losing control. But without an LPA, you are guaranteed to lose control if you lose capacity. With an LPA — even one that feels imperfect — you retain a significant amount of influence over what happens.

Consider someone like David, aged 62, who lived alone and had no children. He did not fully trust his brother or his niece with financial decisions. Rather than do nothing, he appointed them as joint attorneys with strict instructions: no single transaction over £2,000 without both agreeing, no gifts without written justification, and quarterly accounts to be shared with his solicitor. When David later developed vascular dementia, his affairs were managed smoothly and transparently — exactly as he had designed.

Compare that with someone who does nothing. Their bank accounts freeze. Bills go unpaid. A stranger applies to the court. Months pass. Thousands of pounds are spent on legal fees. And the person appointed may be someone the donor barely knows.

Next Steps If You Are Still Unsure

If you are reading this and still feeling uncertain, that is fine. The important thing is not to let uncertainty become permanent inaction. Here are some practical things you can do:

• Talk to a solicitor — a brief consultation can help you understand your options and design an LPA that addresses your specific concerns
• Consider a mixed approach — appoint a trusted person alongside a professional attorney so neither acts unchecked
• Read about the safeguards — understanding how the best interests duty works in practice can be reassuring
• Review your options for no-one-to-appoint — if the issue is that you genuinely have no one to appoint, our dedicated guide covers that scenario
• Start the process — you can begin creating your LPA and take your time before signing, giving you space to think it through

The LPA registration fee is £92, and the document remains valid for life. You can always change your mind and create a new one later, as long as you still have mental capacity. Visit our pricing page to see the full costs, or learn more about how our service works.

Common Questions About Trust and LPAs

This guide was last reviewed and updated on 11 April 2026. Information is based on current legislation and OPG guidance for England and Wales.

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