Care Home Fees - paying for one month after death

soolin

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

True enough. In soolin's case:

I'd be replying with equally polite but firm reminders that this would be dealt with after probate.

Although, a thought occurs: will dad's bank accounts settle a care home invoice direct, before probate? Could be worth asking if it's clear there will be enough to cover all debts in the estate.

All the bank accounts are now locked pending probate and I'm even getting reminders from the banks that I need to let them have sight of th eprobate papers so that the funds can be released. My request for probate has been outstanding now for a couple of months.

Before the accounts were locked at least one of the banks did ask whether i needed a sum released to cover the funeral, and of course nto thinking straight I Just said no. With hindsight I should have asked for them to pay the care home fees. In reality I suppose I could pay them, the outstanding fees are under 2K but I seem to have a mental block in sorting anything out about dad's estate.

dzug1

soolin wrote: »

.

Before the accounts were locked at least one of the banks did ask whether i needed a sum released to cover the funeral, and of course nto thinking straight I Just said no. With hindsight I should have asked for them to pay the care home fees.

I may be wrong, but I don't think banks will release money for anything other than the funeral director's bill and Inheritance Tax.

Savvy_Sue

dzug1 wrote: »

I may be wrong, but I don't think banks will release money for anything other than the funeral director's bill and Inheritance Tax.

Oh, you may well be right, I was just thinking aloud really! "There's a bill, it's obviously one which should come out of the estate, can it be settled direct from the bank account?"

It wasn't a situation we came across, although I shall keep in mind paying for the funeral when Mother's time comes. She was very keen on paying for Dad's funeral herself, and I could understand why, a kind of last act of respect to him, and there was plenty of money in the joint accounts to enable her to do so. Although we paid her back later.

nythrak

I have a similar situation. My father was in a care home for about 12 weeks before he died. Care home left invoices in his room, which I only discovered after he died. They had overcharged by an extra £100 per week on top of what I was verbally told the fee would be.The accounts office have started pressing me for payment. I said it would be settled when probate was obatined and I asked for a copy of contract which they claimed I had signed. I can not remember doing and would have checked the fee charged if I had done so. I am going to hold firm therefore until probate is obtained or they can prove I signed a contract (although that may not be valid as they have not supplied a copy). I am also going to pay them the weekly rate they advised me and I am also going to check with the citizens advice whether 1) they can charge a months fees after date of death and 2) if they can charge interest. They now claim they did send me copies of invoices but of course I did not receive them. Finally they were going to net off the NHS funding of about £100 per week on grounds they would apply for the funding on my fathers behalf. NB He had dementia. This has not been taken off the bill either.