If you become unable to act for yourself, nobody can just take over and sign your name for you. A bank or insurance company will not speak with anyone else but you without their proper legal authority. If you do not have a properly signed Durable Power of Attorney in place, a relative or friend would have to petition the court to make a declaration regarding your competence and appoint someone called a “guardian” to act for you. Guardianship proceedings can have a high cost, both in terms of time and money.
By Esther Schwartz Zelmanovitz
