It's business as usual at Brenda Beveridge Wills & Trusts Ltd and during recent weeks my working practices have changed enormously. I’ve had to be very creative to ensure Wills and other documents are signed appropriately, are valid, while still observing social distancing.
This has included holding all meetings online which has been very interesting for some of my more elderly clients and it’s opened up a whole new online world for them, which many are keen to embrace.
I’ve also witnessed documents by posting them through letterboxes, with stickers of where to sign, watching through windows while clients sign and then witnessing the documents. Unfortunately, we still require the same witnessing as we did before the lockdown, but we’ve not been stuck so far!
Many people are considering their futures and ensuring they have appropriate planning in place, which can include Wills, Trusts and Lasting Powers of Attorney. For many it’s brought home how important Powers of Attorney are for any age, not just for the elderly. There is also another type of Power of Attorney called a General Power of Attorney which allows a person to give legal permission to someone else to make decisions and sign documents on their behalf, it can be used immediately once signed and it doesn’t need registered with the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) as Lasting Powers of Attorney (LPAs) do. These are particularly useful during the current lockdown if people can’t leave their house.
Because of the time to register LPAs with the OPG (usually 10 weeks, but can be longer at present), we currently provide General Powers of Attorney free to anyone taking out LPAs, so these can be used in the time needed for the LPA registration.
Please contact me on 07813 156 713 or legalservices@brendabeveridge.co.uk if you’d like a chat. Advice is free and you’re under no obligation.
Take care, stay safe everyone and I’m really looking forward to when we can meet again in person.
And huge congratulations to Rebecca Beveridge! Brenda said: "I couldn't say anything until the press release, but Rebecca has been awarded £1.4 million via the UK Research & Innovation Leaders Fellowship to continue her research into Cancer & Neurodegenerative diseases. She'll be coming to Glasgow to start a new position once she can get a flight from Austria where she currently works at the Vienna Biocentre & we're really looking forward to having her home."
