Funding a retirement home: the Deferred Payments scheme

[Deleted User]

Watson wrote: »

Even though his combined assets (savings and property) are well over the £23,250 threshold? Surely he's not eligible for any state contribution? Or does that not apply if the care is for health reasons?

If someone needs full time 24/7 care for HEALTH reasons - not social reason - then they should be fully assessed to see if they are entitled to NHS fully funded continuing care.

That care can be in any location including at the persons own home.

A persons assets are not assessed and NO discussion on finance should be contemplated until the person has been through the NHS assessment and turned down.

It can be a very uphill battle to secure funding - especially when the NHS default position is to refuse it and pass the person to social services for financial assessment.

My advice to anyone at the beginning of this worrying nightmare is this -

If someone is going into full time care for HEALTH reasons - and this includes mental health, dementia, alzheimers, and of course physical health reasons - DO NOTHING ABOUT FINANCE UNTIL THE PERSON HAS BEEN FULLY ASSESSED FOR NHS CONTINUING CARE *AND* REFUSED IT.

Once they have been refused, there is an appeals procedure but fees will have to be paid pending the resolution of that - but can be claimed back in the event of winning the appeal.

Watson

You make your core point very forcibly, but I confess I'm still hazy on the exact distinction between health and social reasons. Could you perhaps give an example of a social reason? Is general infirmity due to advanced age a health reason for requiring full-time care? What about blindness? Or the two combined? And who carries out the assessment? A social worker? A doctor? Does it happen automatically or must it be requested?

Many thanks.

Watson

I've now belatedly followed another of Pollycat's links above (for which my thanks) and seen the preliminary assessment form for continuing health care. Clearly there are lots of variables and probably lots of inconsistencies too, but my impression is that my father would not be eligible. And in fact even if he was, I'd be very reluctant to put him through the stress and strains of an application and its consequencies.

BriantheBold

my appologies is this is wrongly posted, or I have hijacked someone elses post, but I need some advice badly.

right, I've always lived with my mother, even after I married, we lived with her as she'd been ill for a number of years, and after my father died, she couldn't look after the property, I did all the maintenance, all out of my own pocket. In 2007 she got really ill and ended up in hospital, and ended up with numerous health problems including dementure. she came home 2009 after lengthy stays in hospitals etc, we tried looking after her at home, despite the dementure coupled with disability & incontinence. we managed a year looking after her at home, then my wife badly injured her spine trying to stop my mother falling over. At this point, I put my mother in a local care home. Social services (lincolnshire) were as much use as an ashtray on a motorbike, so we used our & my mothers savings to pay for care. when the money started to run out, we turned again to social services. we're now in a position, where they are demanding we join the defered payment scheme, even though I've provided them with over 40K worth of reciepts for repairs to the house - I've offered to BUY the house at full market value minus the 40K i've spent. I've had a solicitor working on this for months who doesn't know how to proceed. Lincolnshire social services just ignore anything we suggest & just keep demanding everything. I have my mothers power of attorney. Can anyone suggest anything or do I have to lose 40K?
thanks in advance
Brian

Pollycat

Hi
I think you'd probably be better starting your own thread.

Here on the Over 50s board is the best place for it.

Have you looked at the Counsel & Care website I recommended to Watson?
There is a guide on there that explains (very well, according to Watson ) the 'deferred payment' scheme.

Why have you been using your savings to pay for your Mum's care?

Didn't your local council do a financial assessment to determine how much savings/property Mum had when she first went into the care home?

I guess the house is in your Mum's name and that's what the council sees.
What exactly have the council said to your point that you have paid for repairs to the house?

What has your solicitor done so far?

BriantheBold

hi pollycat

we used some of our savings to pay for some of mums care after her own savings got used. we left 'pocket money' at the home for her & paid for new clothes for her as she'd put weight on & needed all new underwear etc. We only used around a thousand pounds of our money, and I'm not asking for that back. At the time my wife injured her spine, I couldn't get to see mum at the home as my wife needed me more. My wife has thankfully made a recovery, but at the time dealing with lincs ss was virtually impossible, they never returned calls, I sent in letters that were ignored, I was basically threatened by a social worker & had to put in a complaint that wasn't upheld.
we've done 2 financial assenments, I've had the house valued twice - the second time was a joke - social services 'claimed' the house was worth 'upto 500K', yet when I had it valued by an estate agent, it was valued at 140K.
the hose is solely in mums name, but the deeds are held with my solicitors after a boundary dispute in 2003 where I spent several thousands on a court case that i won. social services are dismissing ALL my reciepts - even those from solicitors & courts over the dispute.
my solicitor has written numerous letters to them, organised all the reciepts etc - solicitor now acts as a go-between between me & ss as I no longer trust them at all

BriantheBold

I'm certain there must be other people in the same situation. I can't be the only one. I'm not asking for anything for free - I even suggested SELLING the house, taking my 40K out & giving the rest to SS, but this was unacceptable as well. At the moment I'm stuck - we don't have enough for a deposit on another house. My bank is more than happy to give me a morgage on this place & use my 40K as my deposit. I don't even want to have the power of attorney any more, it's been nothing but a millstone, but I'm terrified of giving it up before we've got a resolution on the house. Social services are not behaving as I feel they should, and I have no idea what to do next apart from an 'all in' attack on social services through the courts.

BriantheBold

Thanks pollycat for the link to counsel + care, lots of helpful leaflets & I've got a slot booked with one of their specialist advisors. I might just have a chance, as it looks like social services have not been entirely truethful about all of our options

Pollycat

Glad it helped, Brian.

I don't know anything about deferred payment as my Mum & Dad didn't own any property when Dad had to go into a care home, but I found lots of very helpful information in their guides & leaflets.

I hope you get some real help with your situation.

Please come back and tell us how you got on, it may help somebody else in the future.

Good luck.