More than 800,000 adults are now placed under curatorship or guardianship due to the deterioration of their physical and mental abilities. But rest assured, if one of your loved ones can no longer manage their finances or risks making decisions that are contrary to their interests, you have several tools before resorting to such a measure.
The “D” system for simple chores. Does your relative no longer pay their bills? Schedule direct debits (water, telephone, electricity bills). With his identifiers, you can also pay his employee at home via the Cesu site or file his tax return and pay his taxes. “Without a legal framework, it remains complicated to go further, if you are not an only child”, note Me Sandrine Celle, notary in Lyon, member of the Monassier Group. “If your loved one is still in his right mind, it’s time to go with the family to the notary to sign a ‘future protection mandate‘: your parent will designate the person who will make the decisions for him in the event of incapacity, give instructions for the management of his assets, specify the budget he wishes to keep for his current expenses, his leisure activities, etc. And when the time comes, on production of a medical certificate, the agent will begin his mission, without having to seize the judge, by rendering accounts once a year to the notary.
Consider proxies. If your relative no longer wants to go to the bank, he can grant you a power of attorney to make transfers, payments, withdrawals or deposits (most establishments require the account holder to go to the counter to sign the form and validate the proxy). Again, “the other heirs may imagine that you are benefiting from it. Keep the receipts for the expenses to protect yourself”, advises Laetitia Fontecave, director of France guardianship. To reassure the siblings, you can otherwise limit the power of attorney to an account or limit the use of the checkbook.
Ask for a protective measure. When the alteration of capacities worsens and the power of attorney is no longer sufficient (and if a protection mandate has not been signed), request a protection measure. File the Cerfa 15424*03 form (downloadable or obtainable at the registry) with the court, with a medical certificate attesting to the loss of faculties (consult the list of doctors authorized at the registry). After hearing the relatives and the fragile person in court (or at home depending on their state of health), it is the judge who chooses – taking into account everyone’s wishes – the appropriate protection. If the family atmosphere is relaxed and the assets simple to administer, ask for a “family authorization”, which is lighter to exercise. “The authorized person represents his relative for ten renewable years for his current acts, without providing an inventory or annual accounts to the judge. The latter’s authorization remains necessary for donations, legacies, or the sale of the main residence. “, summarizes Laetitia Fontecave. If the heritage is complex or if the family does not get along, the judge will opt for curatorship or guardianship, which is more supervised.
Get advice. “Becoming a curator or tutor represents a heavy responsibility: you will have to draw up an initial inventory of assets, then submit detailed annual accounts to the judge. For each major expense or decision – entry into a retirement home, sale of the main residence, etc. – , you must file a request (at the registry or on justice.fr), and substantiate your request, then wait, sometimes up to six months, to obtain the judge’s agreement”, recalls Laetitia Fontecave. “Allowing or restricting a loved one’s spending upsets family relationships. You will have to act against your interests as an heir – for example, by choosing an expensive retirement home – and choose risk-free investments : no question of investing in shares or closing life insurance for take a stake in an SME“, completes Me Sandrine Celle. To take the measure of the task, contact an association (a hundred branches of the Departmental Union of Family Associations organize free training, consult the directory and practical sheets on unaf.fr) .
Share the responsibilities with a relative or, failing that, with a chartered accountant or a wealth management advisor. If you are a tutor, this third party can be designated as “co-tutor”, or “subrogated tutor” if you want to keep the last word to avoid blockages. You do not feel able to take on the task or arguments with your siblings may make it more difficult? Admit it frankly: when the family does not have the shoulders for the role, the judge appoints a tutor or professional curator (association or liberal agent, the cost varies according to the resources of the protected). In any case, you will have to continue to ensure the well-being of your relative: these pros each follow around sixty fragile people and have little time for each file!
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Dario Ingiusto / L’Express