paying care home fees back to local authority

Hazzardaguess

My father passed away owing 2 years care home fees which was paid by the local council (the care home have been paid)
my dad had serious dementia and could not remember who he banked with

this has been sorted now and we know who he banks with and i have applied for probate

he did write a will leaving everything to me - will i still have to pay the council the money or does the debt die with my father - he wont have a lot - and if it needs to be paid well the right thing will be done
 

74jax

Hazzardaguess said:

My father passed away owing 2 years care home fees which was paid by the local council (the care home have been paid)
my dad had serious dementia and could not remember who he banked with

this has been sorted now and we know who he banks with and i have applied for probate

he did write a will leaving everything to me - will i still have to pay the council the money or does the debt die with my father - he wont have a lot - and if it needs to be paid well the right thing will be done
 

What do you mean (bit in bold) ?

Who is the Executor of the Will? They will collect all the assets, gather details of all the debts and pay these from assets, what is left with be his Estate which (from your post) goes to you. 

Is there definately enough to pay all debts? 

peb

Property?  Often a charge put on if so.  Either with the LA or the land registry.  If not unsure how it's dealt with

elsien

Any debts need to be paid from the estate before any beneficiaries receive anything. Will his estate cover the fees or will the estate be insolvent? 

Are you sure the financial assessment from the council is correct? It may be that they presumed he’d need to pay the full amount but that may not have been the case. 

Keep_pedalling

If your father had no assets other than his bank account then the amount that is owed to the council will not be the full amount, but the debt does not die with him, so if the estate has sufficient assets to pay the whole 2 year bill then that takes 3rd priority call on those assets after funeral costs and any secure debt he may have had. 

Even if he had so few assets that he was fully funded there will still be some debt to pay off as he should still have been contributing though any income he was receiving so this can be a quite complex area.

Hazzardaguess

thanks for your help
it is a bit complex
he had no assets - all he had was his state pension that accumulated over 2 years 
he was married and his wife had a property - and they did take a draw on the property for some time whilst he had care at home - however his wife transferred the property to her sons
she passed whilst my dad was in the care home
i was told that they would take the money for his care from his pension each week and leave him with £25 a week pocket money - but because he couldn't remember his bank details - it never got taken

the local authority did send me a bill whilst he was alive for near on £12k - but his social worker told me to ignore it !!

after some investigation i did find out who he banked with
i applied and was granted power of attorney - however i never went down this route as he has now passed and think probate is the easiest way to go..

i have paid for the funeral out of my own money
i dont think there is any debt outstanding other than the care home costs
the only money that my dad would of had in the bank would be the pension that has gone in and not been touched for 2 years

the questcion is - if he had £15k in the bank and the care home costs are not £16k am i liable for the other £1k ( i guess not)
however
the funeral cost £4k - would i be able to recuperate the £4k before the care got paid for ?

or is it the case that he left me all his money - its now mine and the local authority have lost out or can they chase me for it - and do i have to pay ?

shiraz99

Hazzardaguess said:

thanks for your help
it is a bit complex
he had no assets - all he had was his state pension that accumulated over 2 years 
he was married and his wife had a property - and they did take a draw on the property for some time whilst he had care at home - however his wife transferred the property to her sons
she passed whilst my dad was in the care home
i was told that they would take the money for his care from his pension each week and leave him with £25 a week pocket money - but because he couldn't remember his bank details - it never got taken

the local authority did send me a bill whilst he was alive for near on £12k - but his social worker told me to ignore it !!

after some investigation i did find out who he banked with
i applied and was granted power of attorney - however i never went down this route as he has now passed and think probate is the easiest way to go..

i have paid for the funeral out of my own money
i dont think there is any debt outstanding other than the care home costs
the only money that my dad would of had in the bank would be the pension that has gone in and not been touched for 2 years

the questcion is - if he had £15k in the bank and the care home costs are not £16k am i liable for the other £1k ( i guess not)
however
the funeral cost £4k - would i be able to recuperate the £4k before the care got paid for ?

or is it the case that he left me all his money - its now mine and the local authority have lost out or can they chase me for it - and do i have to pay ?

Firstly, if it's just money in the bank, below a certain level then you'll likely not need probate to access it. As already mentioned all debts will need to be paid from his estate first before you would receive anything, if at all.

elsien

The funeral expenses come first. Then the care home and any other debts. Then the bequests to you. You are not liable for any shortfall. 
It is correct that his pension would go towards his fees leaving him the £25 weekly allowance. 

There may be questions about the wife passing the house to her sons (depending on how it was owned) but unless you feel your dad was defrauded and have the inclination to chase this, it’s not your problem. Were there no shared assets from his marriage? 

74jax

Are you the Executor? 

Keep_pedalling

How much is in his account now and which bank? Different banks have different limits on how much they will pay out without probate or letters of of administration. 

You also need to find out how much he had in his account(s) when he went into his care home. If it was below £14,250 then his only contribution to his care costs should have been from his income, so if for example he had £10,000 in his account when he went into care that along with his weekly allowance of £25 (£2600) should be free from any claim from the LA.

The bank’s bereavement department will be able to provide you with statements covering the period he was in care.