Looking after an elderly relative's affairs with no LPA
Discussion
clockworks said:
I am a little concerned that she is telling porkies to social services though. Does having LPA (in a couple of months) place any obligation on mum or me to inform social services of her financial situation?
It places a legal obligation on you to act in her interests, in the way she would if she was capable of making a rational decision...No more, no less.
You may well feel that she's not the type to deliberately defraud the benefits system, if she was capable of making that decision rationally...
Well, she was certainly rational when she claimed council tax benefit nearly 20 years ago, despite being over the savings limit. Either that, or she really didn't understand the forms. I have no idea, neither does mum. Mum only found out when my aunt got sent the bill for over £8k last year. I have no idea if dad knew what his sister was doing, but have a suspicion that he may have. Does she know what she is doing now? Maybe, maybe not. She is displaying symptoms of dementia, has been for about a year.
The way I feel is that I'm not going to lie to social services if they ask me, but I won't go out of my way to offer unprompted information. I don't know any of this for a fact, only what mum has told me. I haven't seen the savings books or bank statements with my own eyes. Maybe it's better that it stays that way?
The way I feel is that I'm not going to lie to social services if they ask me, but I won't go out of my way to offer unprompted information. I don't know any of this for a fact, only what mum has told me. I haven't seen the savings books or bank statements with my own eyes. Maybe it's better that it stays that way?
clockworks said:
Well, she was certainly rational when she claimed council tax benefit nearly 20 years ago, despite being over the savings limit.
Did that have that money then? I don't know how it works for council tax but would guess (and it really is a guess) that it's assessed every year.
With Pension Credit there's a thing called Assessed Income Periods and they're only done every now and again and they're valid for lifetime once the person is over a certain age. So money can be accumulated and doesn't need to be declared until the next assessment.
It's absolutely standard for old people to "forget" they have money stashed away though.
I would think that with an LPA you have to act to the best of your knowledge - if, for example, she hid savings and you didn't know then there's not much you can do about it. If it comes out that you did know then you could be in some difficulty.
It's possible that she didn't have so much in the way of savings when she first claimed council tax benefit. It may have accrued quietly over the past 20 years, and she didn't really think about it.
I'd think it unlikely that she would have been on pension credit, as she would have qualified for a full state pension (based on her late husband's years, plus her own from her younger days), and was getting a 50% widow's company pension of around £300 a month. I'm not sure if she got/gets any disability benefits, as up until the last year or so she was pretty mobile, despite having MS. I know that she was paying for "meals on wheels" and her emergency call device. She was also paying the housing association rent, so no housing benefit.
If anyone official asks questions, I will answer them truthfully, based on what I know as fact. Mum will do the same.
I'd think it unlikely that she would have been on pension credit, as she would have qualified for a full state pension (based on her late husband's years, plus her own from her younger days), and was getting a 50% widow's company pension of around £300 a month. I'm not sure if she got/gets any disability benefits, as up until the last year or so she was pretty mobile, despite having MS. I know that she was paying for "meals on wheels" and her emergency call device. She was also paying the housing association rent, so no housing benefit.
If anyone official asks questions, I will answer them truthfully, based on what I know as fact. Mum will do the same.
clockworks said:
No, she won't be paying the state directly, but she will be saving the state paying for her care for a year or so, unless the rules change.
Ok, so she wont be paying the state at all and given she's not going to attract IHT, I can't see where your earlier concerns come from.I do find that an interesting assertion - saving the state money because she is paying for it herself. I guess you could apply that to every purchase that you make out of net income. Its a question of which of those purchases you think the state should be paying for.
I am interested by this idea, shared a proportion of the public in general it would seem, that the state should be paying for the care of anyone who needs it.
Why?
clockworks said:
Not really sure how my question about how an old lady who is unable to sign a cheque to her bank's satisfaction can pay a bill has turned into a debate about funding social care? It is totally irrelevant to my original post.
Its just a question, and you don't have to answer.Gassing Station | Finance | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff