The Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) - website http://www.publicguardian-scotland.gov.uk/ - has announced price increases from 1st August 2008.
In particular the fee for registering a Power of Attorney (POA) has now increased from the previous £60 to a new figure of £65.
This follows a consultation on increases to its fees between February and early May 2008 which the Scottish Court Service undertook.
They have also set fees for April 2009 and April 2010. The cost of registering your Power of Attorney won’t increase next April, but it will increase to £70 from April 2010.
Good news, though. The increases were around half as much as they originally intended.
It may, or not, be interesting to note that The Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) operational budget for 2007/2008 is £2,153,920. This total figure incorporates both staff costs £1,913,124 (such as salaries, pensions etc) and non-staff costs £240,796 (telephones, postage, printing, etc).
From their website:
“The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) has a range of functions under the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act.
The OPG provides information advice and guidance with regard to Powers of Attorney; Access to Funds; Guardianship and Intervention Orders; and investigations.
The OPG also maintains a Public Register of all continuing powers of attorneys, and welfare powers of attorney drawn up after April 2001, all withdrawers appointed under the access to funds scheme and all guardians and interveners appointed by the courts after April 2002
The OPG investigates concerns where the property or financial affairs of an adult seem to be at risk.
The OPG supervises the actions of withdrawers appointed under the access to funds scheme.
The OPG also supervises all financial guardians and interveners appointed by the courts. As part of this supervision a financial guardian may be required to provide the OPG with a Management Plan, Inventory of Estate and an annual accounting.”
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