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A redress scheme set up five years ago to partially refund people who were overcharged power of attorney (POA) fees is still open – and millions of pounds are still to be claimed.
In 2018 the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) began refunding those who had applied for lasting power of attorney (LPA) between 1 April 2013 and 31 March 2017.
Since this scheme launched, the MoJ has paid out £16m.
Here, Which? takes a closer look at why fees were overcharged and explains how you can claim a refund if you think you were affected.
Lasting Power of Attorney is a legal document in which one person (the donor) gives others the right to make decisions on their behalf about financial or medical decisions (the attorney(s)).
There are two types of LPA: property and financial and health and welfare.
LPAs have to be registered with the government by making an application to the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG). The OPG is allowed to charge all applicants a fee to cover its running costs.
Between 1 April 2013 and 31 March 2017, the Ministry of Justice reduced the OPG's operating costs but the application fee stayed the same.
This meant the OPG generated a surplus from overpayments, as people carried on paying the same price.
The cost of applications was eventually reduced from £110 to £82 from 1 April 2017.
In the Office of the Public Guardian 2022-23 annual report it states: 'The MOJ-led historic refund scheme for power of attorney fees is now in the fifth year of a six-year campaign and this year customers received a total of £3,494.81 in refunds.'
Since 2018, £16.9m has been refunded out of an estimated £69m.
The MoJ said this has been split between 330,000 cases, but it estimates there are 1.7m power of attorney applications involved that could be due a partial refund.
However, the actual number of people affected is likely to be lower because each donor may have registered more than one type of application.
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You will be eligible to claim a refund if you made a power of attorney application in England and Wales between 1 April 2013 and 31 March 2017.
You can make a claim if you’re:
The amount of money you'll get back depends on the amount of fees you paid at the time of your application.
An extra 0.5% interest will be added to each successful claim.
If you made applications for both types of LPA, you could be owed up to £108 plus interest.
If you're unsure of the exact date you paid your POA fees, you can still make a claim and the OPG will check its records to see if you qualify.
| When you paid the fee | Refund for each power of attorney |
|---|---|
| April to September 2013 | £54 |
| October 2013 to March 2014 | £34 |
| April 2014 to March 2015 | £37 |
| April 2015 to March 2016 | £38 |
| April 2016 to March 2017 | £45 |
The online application process closed in January 2021, however the MoJ told us people can write to the OPG and request a refund.
Email poarefunds@justice.gov.uk to request a refund.
Or write to the OPG by post, and send it to: POA Refunds Team, Lower Ground Floor, Office of the Public Guardian, PO Box 16185, Birmingham, B2 2WH.
It may take up to 12 weeks for your claim to be processed, and if it’s approved you’ll be sent a refund via cheque.
