Benefits home visit question

aliasojo

This may sound daft to some of you but it's a genuine question.

Benefits chap is coming out to see son and I in two weeks time. Apparently I should have been made his official appointee but it's never been brought up before.

Son's difficulties mean he just doesn't cope with anything out of his norm. I have to 'prepare' him as best I can by constantly going over what will happen, what we can expect, etc etc.

The benefits chap I spoke to on the phone understood the issues completely and said it was very usual for people like my son to do x, y or z so I'm relieved that the visitor will be understanding if son kicks off.

Anyway, I have gone over the basics with son, talked to him about how the chap will say hello and will just ask him some simple questions etc but son asked if he will want to see his bedroom to see his models (his renewal form asked about what help he needs to do hobbies etc and one of the things was help to make his models and he can't understand the instructions properly and he has problems with his motor control).

I said he wouldn't want to see his room or his models but the question is in my head now so I just thought I'd double check?

Is the chap likely to want to do anything other than sit in the living room? It doesn't matter in the least, lol, I'm happy to give him a guided tour if required, I just need to prepare son in advance as much as poss.

I thought it was only really going to be a few questions about whether he can manage his own affairs or not, but I'm wondering if that's naive and there will be more to the visit than I am anticipating.

This site is a great source of info but I do sometimes think it works in reverse and reading some of the threads and people's experiences cause worries that normally would not be there. (Or is that just me? )

lin_c_2

It's a very quick basic visit just to get you to sign to be the appointee. Don't be concerned about your son's behaviour the man isn't out for that.
Now your son is at that age it would probably be best if you now apply for Welfare Guardianship.

AsknAnswer2

He's just coming out to ensure that

a) your son needs an appointee
b) you are an apporpriate person to carry out the role.

Pollycat

When my Dad was going into a care home (he had Dementia), the visitor from our County Council who was doing a financial assessment told me that I (or someone in our family) needed to contact the DWP about being an appointee for Dad.

I did this and a lady visited us at the care home.

She went through all Dad's finances (income, savings) with me in a separate room from Dad and said I would have to have an account in my name for them to pay his benefits into and I would then be responsible for paying his care home fees.

She did all this before even seeing Dad.
When we'd finished, she popped in to see him and asked him a few questions, such as 'Do you know where you are?' (he didn't) and it was very clear that he couldn't manage his affairs so that was that.
She was in his room less than 5 minutes.

The meeting was on a Friday and I received a letter about me being his appointee the following week.

If it's pretty clear to her that your son can't deal with stuff, I think it will be a short visit.
These people do these visits all the time and must see people in all sorts of different circumstances, they'll be used to assessing quickly.

Hope it all goes smoothly for you both.

aliasojo

Pollycat wrote: »

She went through all Dad's finances (income, savings) with me in a separate room from Dad and said I would have to have an account in my name for them to pay his benefits into and I would then be responsible for paying his care home fees.

Thanks Pollycat.

When you say the person went through income and savings etc, did she need actual figures or statements or was it more general?

Son's benefits are already paid into my account then moved onto another higher interest account. Will I need to have statements and things to hand? Will they expect actual figures? I'm not sure it's their business how much savings he has especially since his savings don't affect his benefits. :undecided

We've managed very happily for years with no hassle, this 'making it official' business is a pain tbh.

Pollycat

Hi Aliasojo
Obiously my Dad's and your boy's situations are different.

But, to answer your question:

yes, she did need to see actual bank statements and the original of a savings bond held jointly by Mum & Dad.
She also wanted to see proof of Dad's occupational pensions.
She was quite thorough in this part of the meeting.

OK, I've had a rummage through Mum & Dad's paperwork (it's still at my house as I've been dealing with everything since he died 2 months ago so it's easier to have it with me).

Have you received a letter from DWP about the Local Service visit?

It should give time, place and the name of the person coming to visit and a number for you to call if you have any questions.

The letter also gives details of what documentation they will want to see from you to prove your identity.

I was sure that I'd had a letter telling me what they wanted to see but maybe I'm confusing that with the County Council financial assessment to see if Dad should fully fund his own care.

For them, I'd got 6 months bank statements so I'd got lots of stuff - I just can't remember how much she needed to see.

During the meeting, she also did an application for Pension Credit for my Dad in his name (he had been getting it jointly with Mum).

I'm just giving my experience and don't want to worry or mislead you - I think you should ring DWP and ask them exactly what this visitor will ask and what documentation they will want to see (if any).

FWIW, I think all the financial stuff was to check how much Pension Credit Dad should get so if it's not going to be any change in benefits for your son, they'll probably not need to see anything - but best to be prepared.

Hope this helps
Regards

aliasojo

Thanks again Pollycat.

After submitting a DLA renewal form for my son, I got a phone call telling me form was fine and the claim was passed with no problem but that I really should have been made his official appointee. They arranged a date for a visit and told me I'd need to fill out a form, I'd need 2 forms of identification for me (passport & driver's licence preferably) and some for son and that was it.

There wasn't any mention of savings, statements etc. The problem is, lots of our stuff is still in boxes and it would take me years to find all relevant paperwork, I wouldn't even have a clue where to start looking right at this moment tbh. So if it's going to be needed, it's going to be a huge hassle.

They said they would ask son a couple of short questions and make sure I understood the responsibilities (considering I've been responsible for him for so long I think I've got that bit sussed ).

Oh well, just need to wait and see.

Pollycat

aliasojo wrote: »

There wasn't any mention of savings, statements etc. The problem is, lots of our stuff is still in boxes and it would take me years to find all relevant paperwork, I wouldn't even have a clue where to start looking right at this moment tbh. So if it's going to be needed, it's going to be a huge hassle.

If I were you I'd not do anything, just wait for the visitor and if they then ask for stuff say you'll have to find it later - and it might take you a long time.

I don't think you have anything to worry about, I hope I've not made things worse by giving you my experience.

aliasojo

Lol, don't worry Pollycat, if anything it's my awful tendancy to overthink everything that's the issue.

I never used to be as bad until I started reading all the threads on this benefits board. :rotfl:

oldsporty

Hi, I think Pollycats' situation required a different kind of visit. I had a similar visit when I was looking after my elderly Mother. I had a visit regarding being an Appointee for my Daughter and it was a very quick visit and the Man who came out very nice. Just a form to sign and everything was done. My Daughter was present but he just said Hello to her and then did everything with me. Hope this helps.

Hammyman

aliasojo wrote: »

This may sound daft to some of you but it's a genuine question.

Benefits chap is coming out to see son and I in two weeks time. Apparently I should have been made his official appointee but it's never been brought up before.

Son's difficulties mean he just doesn't cope with anything out of his norm. I have to 'prepare' him as best I can by constantly going over what will happen, what we can expect, etc etc.

So your son is autistic then? This is one of the main traits along with the poor fine motor skills. Because you haven't mentioned he is autistic, do you have a diagnosis? Are you even aware that it is most likely this?

If you aren't already on the National Autistic Society forums, may I suggest you join them? There is a wealth of help available.