Help needed Savings

Kev_Allison

Hi there, pretty desperate here.
Mother and Father have a joint bank account. Mother is currently suffering from Alzheimers and is totally unaware of everything that is going on around her, she no longer recognises family members.Mother is fine health wise other than the dementia
Dad is in a care home with stage 4 Advanced Lung cancer with complications (This has hit him in the space of 3 weeks, he was fit and healthy 3 weeks ago, now he has major difficulty in breathing and is bed ridden)and isnt expected to live beyond 2 weeks. Because of his condition, his stay is fully funded by the MacMillan Trust. He is compos mentis and is fully aware of what is going on.
They currently have around £15k in savings of which a small amount is paid for her stay at the home. ( About £40 a week)
Dad is adamant that he wants the savings to go to the family and not the state.
There are 2 wills, both basically saying the same except the names change ( Dads for Mams and Mams for Dads)
It looks like Dad will pass away first so that means mother will be executor, but she isnt in any state to do this, so it will be down to myself or my brother. Myself as I am the eldest
There is no estate other than some odds and ends at their home,furniture,etc just the savings and as I have already stated, Dad wants this to go to myself and my brother

Is there anything I can do with the savings in the meantime ? State is aware that there is around £14k in their account. I will leave some in to ensure all mothers needs are cared for. But trying to heed what Dad is saying.
Any suggestions thanks ?

TonyMMM

Are the savings in the joint account ?

Do you have Power of Attorney for either/both parents ?

Are there any other assets likely to form part of the estate ...e.g. a house (and if so who owns them) ?

Kev_Allison

TonyMMM wrote: »

Are the savings in the joint account ?

Do you have Power of Attorney for either/both parents ?

Are there any other assets likely to form part of the estate ...e.g. a house (and if so who owns them) ?

No, not had the time due to the speed and aggression of the cancer to get POA.
No assets other than the savings as they now live in a council house ( I am up to speed and date with sorting that side out, just wondering what we can do with the savings they have)
Dad wants us to spend the money and leave nothing to mother ( long story, but they fell out a few weeks ago before dad got sick)

Justdont know what to do with the savings. Dad wants us to spend it to stop it going to mother or the state, but I said we are not allowed to do this due to something to do with Mam being in a care home partly funded by the state

RAS

What you are looking at is deprivation of assets.

Suggest that dad need to talk to someone like Age Concern.

Dad can change the executor of his will by use of a codicil if he is considered compos mentis but if he is on pain killers he really needs assessing by a medical professional before he does this and it may still be open to challenge.

Mojisola

Is there a house to sell as well as the £15k savings?

If someone needs residential care and has less than £23,250, they don't have to contribute to their care.

Mojisola

Kev_Allison wrote: »

Dad is in a care home with stage 4 Advanced Lung cancer with complications (This has hit him in the space of 3 weeks, he was fit and healthy 3 weeks ago, now he has major difficulty in breathing and is bed ridden)and isnt expected to live beyond 2 weeks. Because of his condition, his stay is fully funded by the MacMillan Trust.

He is compos mentis and is fully aware of what is going on.

Why doesn't he write a new will? A solicitor will do the job quickly for him if you explain the situation.

Kev_Allison

RAS wrote: »

What you are looking at is deprivation of assets.

Suggest that dad need to talk to someone like Age Concern.

Dad can change the executor of his will by use of a codicil if he is considered compos mentis but if he is on pain killers he really needs assessing by a medical professional before he does this and it may still be open to challenge.

Thanks, as of today, as far as I am aware, Dad isnt on painkillers

Kev_Allison

Mojisola wrote: »

Is there a house to sell as well as the £15k savings?

If someone needs residential care and has less than £23,250, they don't have to contribute to their care.

No house to sell, just savings plus whatever is in the house, sofa, fridge, washing machine/dryer etc

Mojisola

Kev_Allison wrote: »

No house to sell, just savings plus whatever is in the house, sofa, fridge, washing machine/dryer etc

So your mother will be getting her care for free.

RAS

Mojisola wrote: »

So your mother will be getting her care for free.

OP - you need to ask why mum is contributing to her keep when her savings are so low (unless this based on income that dad receives?)

And with assets that low, deprivation of assets should not be an issue unless dad gifts you the money during his life time (this would affect any means-tested benefits he receives).

Dad needs to write a new will urgently.

Kev_Allison

Mojisola wrote: »

So your mother will be getting her care for free.

No, because of the amount in their joint account at the time, (Over £14k and under £23k) Dad pays around £40 a week towards her care which stands at around £200 a day