investments accounted for in private long term care?

Chris_P_2

Can someone please confirm if a council would contribute any costs towards private care home costs? I understand investment bonds aren't taken into account when looking at assets.

Aegis

Investment bonds can be counted if the sole purpose for selecting an investment bond was to avoid paying for care home fees. In general most investments are included when assessing eligibility, but I believe that ISAs are excluded.

Someone with a little more experience can probably expand on this point and correct my inevitable mistakes!

dunstonh

ISAs are included in the means test. Its just tax that they are not.

Investment bonds are not included providing they have been running a while and there is a good reason for having one. If you let it slip you took it out to avoid the means test then it will be included. If you take an income from the investment bond, then the income is included in the means test. Financial advisers are not allowed to recommend investment bonds to avoid means testing. So, the suitability report issued would contain other good reasons why a bond was considered the best option and that can be your documentary evidence should it ever be needed. (Bonds are fairly easy to justify on investments over £50k. Ideally 100k and over is best Under that it gets harder to justify).

Aegis

dunstonh wrote: »

ISAs are included in the means test. Its just tax that they are not.

Investment bonds are not included providing they have been running a while and there is a good reason for having one. If you let it slip you took it out to avoid the means test then it will be included. If you take an income from the investment bond, then the income is included in the means test. Financial advisers are not allowed to recommend investment bonds to avoid means testing. So, the suitability report issued would contain other good reasons why a bond was considered the best option and that can be your documentary evidence should it ever be needed. (Bonds are fairly easy to justify on investments over £50k. Ideally 100k and over is best Under that it gets harder to justify).

I knew I'd get something wrong! Thanks for the correction

Chris_P_2

So if someone has an investment bond can thye take an income from this and it still be deemed not countable?

And do councils contribute towards private care homes?

Baldur

Chris_P wrote: »

So if someone has an investment bond can thye take an income from this and it still be deemed not countable?

Answered by dunstonh above:

If you take an income from the investment bond, then the income is included in the means test.

And do councils contribute towards private care homes?

See various websites, including http://alzheimers.org.uk/factsheet/468 and http://www.equitycare.co.uk/long-term-care/who-pays/local-authority-contributions.php

cepheus

Councils are very reluctant to accept their exempt status and may repeatedly claim that all savings are included in the means test bar none. Use the term 'investment bond' and they might change their tone. These two documents may be useful.

http://www.ecadviser.com/xq/asp/txtSearch.Financial+Planning/exactphrase.1/sid.0/articleid.A929E1D6-5327-4BB4-91F4-2842466F2393/qx/display.htm

http://www.friendsprovident.co.uk/doclib/ctst18.pdf

Good luck!