getting council tax benefit but will be going over £16,000 savings limit?

jakirk

My brother and his wife, who are both over 65, get £500 a year council tax benefit because their joint savings are less than £16,000.

They are about £10,000.

They own their house outright, no mortgage and their income is from pensions which total about £330 a week.

They used to get pension credits but these stopped when their income went up due to getting a pension.

Just under a year ago he bought a car for £18,000, partly financed by cash and part exchange.

He has had a stroke and although recovering, he is not allowed to drive and as his wife does not drive he is selling the car.

He has been offered £12,000 for it, which, if he does not get a better offer for it, he is going to take as he would have to tax and insure it or declare it SORN but he has no place off road to keep it.

And as he says, better the money in his pocket than sitting tied up in a car.

This of course will take his savings to over the £16,000 limit, so should he just phone up the council and say he no longer wants to claim council tax benefit for the year 2012/2013 or will they want to investigate why?

[Deleted User]

so a year ago he had £18,000 + in savings?did he not declare this?
has his stroke left him with any care needs?if so he could claim attendance allowance

Dunroamin

Did they notify the council when their income went up to £330 per week?

xylophone

woodbine wrote: »

so a year ago he had £18,000 + in savings?did he not declare this?
has his stroke left him with any care needs?if so he could claim attendance allowance

The purchase was part exchange and cash...

margaretclare

He had a stroke and although recovering, he is not allowed to drive and as his wife does not drive he is selling the car.

I believe there is no upper age-limit on learning to drive. I had a cousin once who learned at about that sort of age. It was a godsend to her because her husband died suddenly.

Without at least one driver in the family they are both likely to find their mobility severely limited. I know that, for us, if we weren't both drivers we could end up being housebound.

sleepless_saver

jakirk wrote: »

This of course will take his savings to over the £16,000 limit, so should he just phone up the council and say he no longer wants to claim council tax benefit for the year 2012/2013 or will they want to investigate why?

Surely he can just contact them to explain that their savings are now more than £16k as a result of selling car. Council will then recalculate council tax benefit entitlement. End of.

t0rt0ise

sleepless_saver wrote: »

Surely he can just contact them to explain that their savings are now more than £16k as a result of selling car. Council will then recalculate council tax benefit entitlement. End of.

Exactly so. And the council won't give them any benefit until their savings are once again below the limit. But wait until they have sold the car first because they will get benefit until then, so for part of the year. Benefit will be calculated weekly.

jakirk

so a year ago he had £18,000 + in savings?

Why shouldn't he have? Relevance to the question asked?

did he not declare this?

Of course he did. Relevance to the question asked?

Did they notify the council when their income went up to £330 per week?

Of course, Relevance to the question asked?

I believe there is no upper age-limit on learning to drive.

And? Relevance to the question asked?

Surely he can just contact them to explain that their savings are now more than £16k as a result of selling car. Council will then recalculate council tax benefit entitlement. End of.

That is what he wants to know.

Exactly so. And the council won't give them any benefit until their savings are once again below the limit. But wait until they have sold the car first because they will get benefit until then, so for part of the year. Benefit will be calculated weekly

So when he comes back from his theraputic round the world cruise after spending the money from selling his car he can apply again the same year?

Good.

Caz3121

jakirk wrote: »

So when he comes back from his theraputic round the world cruise after spending the money from selling his car he can apply again the same year?

that will be one for the decision maker to decide what is reasonable spending and decide whether they still need to include notional capital in the calculations

st999

How is he getting paid for the car? if cash, just keep it under the bed:rotfl:.