Being charged for care - please help

Primrose

Mark, I'm so sorry you've been landed with this problem at such a young age and would recommend you try and contact Age Concern. My father suffered dimentia, was sectioned and had to go into care and I was never told that he was entitled to free care, and I had to sell his home to pay the fees. When I subsequently discovered this after his death I was eventually able to reclaim his fees after a long battle, so do try and get the best advice you can. You have obviously had a very tough battle so far and deserve all the support you can get.

monkeyspanner

Primrose was your successful reclaim for NHS Continuing Care? If it was any pointers would be appreciated.

My MIL has just been turned down for CC by panel but we have discovered that the panel downgraded a caterory in her assessment which meant she was then under the minimum success level. We intend to appeal and are currently finding out all we can about the system.

On discharge from hospital my MIL's "care Manager" failed to ensure an assessment was performed as a result by the time we caught up with this, it took us 15 weeks to get an assessment done. The owner of my MIL's care home believes the assessment underestimates my MIL's care needs substantially and it contains a number of errors, omissions and seems to take the most optomistic view in all categories even though the guidance notes for the assessment tool clearly indicate that the worst case should be assessed.

EdInvestor

Primrose wrote: »

My father suffered dimentia, was sectioned and had to go into care

Anyone who has been sectioned is automatically entitled to free care.

KD

Mark- lots of good advice and opinions on this thread. Here's something that you need to be thinking about given your father's situation.

I'm hoping you have a good relationship with your grandparents and can talk to them about their wills. It could be that they intended to leave everything to their children (your father and any siblings). If this money went to your dad- it's likely to get eaten up as well. I'd talk to your GP's and suggest they may want to bypass your father under these circumstances and leave what would have been his inheritance to you. There are no pockets on a shroud! (a good old Scottish saying!)

There is nothing wrong with tax avoidance (not tax evasion), and good forward planning can help you with this.

KD

Nigel - here's a growing trend.

Depending on the property and how much your father needs to pay for his care, you could rent his property out and use that money to pay for his care. This way, the capital is preserved allowing it to be bequeathed on death.

Depending on what the care costs and the amount you can get for the rent- it's an innovative solution!