wills

[Daisy]

I don't think that this is correct. I had a joint account with my Mum before she died and I was able to carry on using it and changed it into a sole named account after she died. I did not have a power of attorney as I was able to deal with her financial affairs using the joint account. Best you get advise from an impartial source.

Avo - you are right. I've had a word with my OH about this (he's a retired bank manager and financial consultant) and he says that if you have joint accounts and the bank mandate (made when you opened the accounts) is"either to sign" (as opposed to "both to sign") there would be no trouble in continuing to use the account. When you have a death certificate inform the bank that the other account holder has passed away and they will either just delete the other name from the account or set up a new one in the survivor's name. The only small problem might arise is if there is an uncleared cheque issued by the deceased, which is presented for payment after he/she has died, in which case the survivor would be able to issue a new one.

[Daisy]

Skye - you are right in saying that if a couple die together it is assumed that the older one died first. But I don't know how that would affect a child of the older partner. I would definitely talk to a solicitor about this and put everything on a legal footing.

[Shemadee]

They are called lasting power of attorney and you now need one for finances and one for health issues. https://www.gov.uk/power-of-attorney/overview This site gives you the info you need.

[Daisy]

Shem - a useful site to know about. Many thanks.