Council tax capital

edsir

My father is undergoing an assessment for council tax benefit and because of the value of shares he owns his capital is 500 pounds over the limit of £16,000.The reason being he has not paid any rent, support or care charges for the past few months since he moved in his extracare housing on a shared ownership basis and he owes over a thousand pounds for that. I am very concerned he will be disallowed as he is over the capital limit but as soon as he pays debts he will well under.I was told over the phone by a youngish sounding council officer that if his bank statement shows over he will have to put in a new claim when it goes down. Would appreciate an informed answer as to whether they take rent owed etc into account when assessing capital please.

allen35

The rather young (irrelevant) adviser is right, if you have savings above £16000 you are not entitled to means tested benefits regardless of debt unless over state pension age for a woman.

If he cashes his shares in and pays his rent this may bring him a small entitlement to Council Tax Benefit.

Pretty confusing really, what is his current income as this will be taken into consideration too.

edsir

His current account has built up owing to the council rent and support charges being assessed . He has to have the assessment as it is used to assess his care charges, he probably wont be entitled to council tax benefit but gets money off the care charges which exceed the money he has got coming in.The service charges etc are very high so thats why he was told to appy as they are taken into consideration as outgoings. .Can I insist on paying the full charges owed coz then he will be under the limits? I did not know he was allowed to sell his shares, they are counted as capital so there would be no point unless I am mistaken. Thanks for your help.

edsir

It seems unfair that as a consequence of the process he has accumulated just over the capital limit, thats all, so thats why I wondered if they would take what he owes into consideration because the council does not usually ask for payment during the assessment process I was told, so his money has built up.

allen35

I think face to face advice would be more appropriate in this case.

There are probably too many questions to be asked to get a definitive answer.

Can you arrange an app't at a CAB.

Have info' such as his current income (pension, benefits, disability benefits etc), savings and stocks and shares, age, current payable rent in shared ownership property, council tax band.

You need advice on the question of paying full care charges against receiving council tax benefit.

if he lives alone he should be receiving 25% discount and on a Council Tax bill of £1200 he would need to pay £17.30 per week.

I would suggest contacting the Council to ensure his account is up to date to avoid any further action such as bailiffs. If there are arrears ask them to hold any action until his assessment has been completed.

Yes, he should be able to cash in his stocks n shares but be aware he may get less back than he put in depending on management charges and how long they have been maturing.

Once again seek advice on this too.

Good Luck