A couple who became suspicious when a neighbour they'd known for decades 'vanished overnight' and her home was later cleared and sold - at a 'knock down price' - have been praised for sparking an investigation into increasing concerns over power of attorney legislation.
![[Carole, a lady in her 60s from Uxbridge, was visited by Hiller while recovering in a care home following a stay in intensive care. She agreed he could have Power of Attorney over her estate - and was devastated to find out her home had later been sold and a lifetime of possessions reduced to just a few bin bags]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/18/12/93269411-14177079-Carole_a_lady_in_her_60s_from_Uxbridge_was_visited_by_Hiller_whi-a-28_1734525887059.jpg)
A real-time investigation into how elderly and vulnerable people are not properly protected by loopholes in Lasting Power of Attorney legislation is the subject of a BBC podcast currently being aired on Radio 4. Shadow World: The Willpower Detectives has uncovered multiple stories involving people signing over their worldly wealth to a stranger, often because they have little or no family.
![[Carole's home in Uxbridge was cleared and went up sale quietly - being marketed in Essex not Hertfordshire - after Ron Hiller took control of her finances; her neighbours also expressed concern that the property was sold at a 'knock down price']](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/18/12/93272495-14177079-Carole_s_home_in_Uxbridge_was_cleared_and_went_up_sale_quietly_b-a-33_1734525928684.jpg)
One man, currently being investigated by police following the BBC investigation, is at the centre of the potential scandal unearthed over seven episodes. Ron Hiller, who isn't a qualified solicitor despite being listed as a partner in his Essex law firm, could currently have, the BBC estimates, power of attorney for more than hundred people via his company, Craybeck Law.
![[Carole was left with just a few possessions after her house was cleared - with documents including her passport lost]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/18/12/93271631-14177079-Carole_was_left_with_just_a_few_possessions_after_her_house_was_-a-30_1734525903479.jpg)
A Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) document enables those granted it to make financial decisions and take control of a person's money on their behalf. The concerning opening episode of the series, The Doorstep Stranger, reveals how Carole, a single lady in her sixties, 'disappeared' from her home in Uxbridge, Hertfordshire - and later lost the property she'd lived in happily for years after she signed over her wealth to Hiller via an LPA.
![[Carole has shared the home with her late brother for decades; with their treasured possessions cleared from the house before it was put on the market by Ron Hiller]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/12/18/12/93272491-14177079-Carole_has_shared_the_home_with_her_late_brother_for_decades_wit-a-32_1734525919680.jpg)
