The increase in applications for Power of Attorney (PoA) is a positive indicator that more people are viewing PoA as a vital part of their long-term life planning.
While the increasing numbers of applications have challenged us this year, we have been working hard to reduce delays. This week, we have met our 30 day registration target for PoA applications made online using EPOAR, (Electronic Power of Attorney Registration) which accounts for 65% of applications.
Postal applications are taking longer at 45 days but we are committed to improving this and are currently training additional staff to help us reduce this delay.
We understand the anxiety that people will experience if there is a delay to registering PoAs. We want to reassure people that we can fast-track applications which are urgent. We are registering those in an average of 2 days, through this expedited process.
We will continue to publish our performance on our website at
www.publicguardian-scotland.gov.uk/general/news/2017/10/30/poas-to-be-processed-this-week