Mum is in a Care Home and is a self funder. I am her Deputy and have been managing the payments from her account however, her cash fund will run out very soon and the Council have said that they can put a deferred payment plan on the house. This is the property I have been living in all my life so this is obviously very worrying. I understand under the Care Act that the property can be disregarded if I am 60 years old (not there yet), claiming benefits (I have started a PIP claim) or can apply a discretionary disregard if I am incapacitated so that I could be claiming benefits but currently not. I a have applied for the last one but it has been refused at the moment although they have dais I can provide more evidence. It is very vague as to the evidence they require. I am mental health issues (OCD and anxiety) and all this uncertainty is causing me to become very unwell. It is imperative to me to feel safe and I no longer do so. Has anyone been in this position? What sort of evidence does the Council need? I have supplied a copy of my PIP application and my OCD test results with proof that I have receiving counseling. Can anyone help please? I am feeling very desperate and alone. Thank you
Hi Flutterbee. I strongly suggest you contact the Helpline, using the email address: advice@carersuk.org - they may not answer right away but they will get back to you with advice on this, and it’s imperative you get the right advice.
Social workers often don’t know the rules! I once reclaimed £8,000 from Hampshire! When did they last do a full financial assessment for mum? Do you have Power of Attorney? Are mum’s savings now below about £23,000? Have they put anything in writing? Insist that from now on they put everything in emails, no phone calls. As previously advised, ring the helpline asap.
Hello, Flutterbee. I presume that Mum is the outright owner of the house (no outstanding mortgage). It seems that the council is not trying to force the sale of the house but is offering a scheme whereby when the house is eventually sold it will claim against the proceeds of the sale in respect of the funding it has provided.
Have I interpreted all this correctly? Please correct me if not.
It would help us if you could answer a few more questions.
- How old is Mum?
- How old are you?
- Are you married?
- Do you have any children (possibly now adult) living with you?
- Do you have a job or other source of income?
A clearer picture could give better guidance towards the way ahead.
The automatic disregard depends on a number of things. Denis’ questions aren’t being nosey, the answers are directly related to disregards.