How many attorneys should I appoint?
The short answer
How many people would you genuinely trust with this?
Is one of them clearly the most capable and available?
Do you want a second pair of eyes on decisions about your money?
Is there someone suitable who could step in if an attorney could no longer act?
Suggested appointment
Answer all four questions to see a suggestion.
General guidance for LPAs in England and Wales, not advice on your circumstances.
One, two or more — the trade-offs
| Number | Strength | Weakness |
|---|---|---|
| One attorney | Fast, simple, no coordination; banks find it easiest | No oversight; the LPA fails if they cannot act and no replacement is named |
| Two attorneys | Cover for illness and holidays, natural mutual check | Requires them to communicate; disagreement is possible |
| Three or more | Very resilient; hard for one person to act unnoticed | More signatures, longer form, more identity checks by third parties |
Replacement attorneys matter more than the number
A replacement attorney only steps in when an original attorney can no longer act — they have no role before then. They cost nothing to add and they are the difference between the LPA carrying on and the family applying to the Court of Protection for a deputyship, which typically costs several hundred pounds and takes months.
The risk is sharpest with a joint appointment: if attorneys must act jointly and one dies, the entire appointment ends unless a replacement was named. See jointly or jointly and severally.
A worked example
A donor with three adult children appoints all three jointly and severally, with no replacements. Ten years later one child has emigrated and one has died. The third child can still act alone — the LPA works exactly as intended. Had the same donor required them to act jointly, the LPA would have failed on the first death.
Common questions
Can I appoint different attorneys for each LPA?
Yes, and it is common: money to the financially confident child, health decisions to the one living nearby.
Can attorneys be paid?
Professional attorneys can charge. Family attorneys can reclaim reasonable out-of-pocket expenses, but not pay themselves for their time unless the LPA says so.
Who can be an attorney at all?
They must be 18 or over and have capacity; for a financial LPA they must not be an undischarged bankrupt. Check a specific person with the attorney eligibility checker.
Source: GOV.UK — choosing your attorneys.
Name your attorneys in minutes
We ask who you want to appoint, how they should act, and who should step in — then produce the LPA. £49 per LPA, £79 for both.
The Office of the Public Guardian charges a separate £82 to register each LPA.