Mum went into a care home

[Helena]

Purple Poppy

I dont think they can force your dad to top up anything

Separate taxation is the rule of law with everything now so i think it applies to care home fees too

The only thing they might try is a charge on 1/2 the house but resist even that

Your Mother is ill and needs care and the Coughlin case etc says it should be free

 

[jenniferpa]

My pleasure, Purple Poppy.

I think it's unconscionable that these sort of things have to be found out by individuals, rather than being well publicized by the people supposed to be enforcing them. I realise that central government and LA are separate, in that anything the government makes the LA do must be funded separately, but it is my understanding that this Liable Relative Rule has always been applied haphazardly, and that there have been very few cases (if any) where these payments have been enforced by the courts. Essentially the LA's have relied on intimidation to get people to cough up, and at a time when they're in emotional turmoil, and it's just not on.

Jennifer

 

[PurplePoppy]

Helena, you are right. The new rules, which officially commence April, 2007, are already in force, and the liable relatives rule no longer applies. They can take any money that is ibn my mum's name, or half from a joint account. The most they can lay claim to is half the property, and as my dad is still living in it, they cannot force him to sell it. If he decides to move in the future, or when he passes away, then they could ask for half the money. I think this is still disgusting as my father and mother worked hard all their lives. They didn't have a new car every year, they didn't go on lavish holidays and my dad made sure he put money away for their retirement. Both my parents had there wages taxed and NI contributions taken, so how come they are expected to may anything now. It makes me so cross.

Jenniferpa, maybe an inforamtion pack could be got together by the Alzheimers Society and when a person is diagnosed the doctors hand out the pack. Also I think the social workers should tell people about all this. My dad was fore warned as both him and I had found all sorts of info on various web sites. A lot of elderly people find it hard to understand all the paperwork, and I think at times the authorities play on that and make demands that they know they haven't the right to make.

 

[Kayla]

Information for non- computer users

This morning I was told about a lady of 80, whose husband is in a NH because he doesn't recognise his family any more and is unable to do very much. She is feeling very isolated and has no-one to talk to about his problems, but she doesn't have access to a computer to share experiences on Talking Point. I think she lives in Chester so I suggested her friend might try and contact the Alzheimer's Society there. There must be a lot of people who are unable to seek help through the internet and we are lucky to be able to contact other people in this way.

 

[daughter]

maybe an inforamtion pack could be got together by the Alzheimers Society and when a person is diagnosed the doctors hand out the pack

I agree PurplePoppy - it seems like a sensible thing to hand something like this to the carer, and would help so many people. Not just information for money matters but something that contains as many helpful contacts as possible about all the different things that we are forced to consider when someone has AD. Then again, it would probably be too heavy to carry out of the surgery!

Also, the information needs to be handed to the carer, not just placed in a rack in the waiting room where it will be passed over at the stressful time of the visit.

http://www.alzheimers.org.uk/TalkingPoint/Discuss/showthread.php?t=2217#post19311

 

[Lila13]

There were information packs available on the tables in the waiting-room when we went to the whole-day Rapid Results Clinic in January. My mother wasn't diagnosed then, doctors were still saying "nothing wrong with her". The support nurse at the first Memory Clinic gave me some material too but it wasn't much use.

 

[daughter]

Thanks Nada, I see why this might be a problem trying to cater for everything/everyone. It would be good if more GP surgeries etc. asked for the literature and handed them out.

 

[PurplePoppy]

I think it would be a very good thing if on diagnosis the carer was handed a card with the Alzheimers details. Then they can contact the society and get all the relevant information.

I lost count of the number of hours spent searching for info from various sites and sending them onto my dad. Luckily we are both internet friendly, but anyone who hasn't got a PC, could still phone or write to the society for help.

 

[Nebiroth]

I thought that property had to be disregarded completely if it was occupied by a spouse? Not sure if there's an age component (for example the spouse has to be over 60 for this to work)

It would be absurd to try to lay claim to half the value of a house, since it would mean forcing the occupant to sell the home they still live in, and taking half the money would leave them without the means to buy a new home. This violates the principle that the authority has a duty not to make anyone homeless - as it would then have to house them as a homeless person! This is why they will sometimes ignore a home if (for example) a relative or friend has given up their own home and moved in to act as carer.

I suppose what they could do is to raise a charge against the property and wait until the spouse has also passed away.

The factsheet on this site says

A person's home will not be taken into account as capital if it is occupied by:

* A husband, wife or unmarried partner
* A close relative under the age of 16 or over the age of 60
* A relative under the age of 60 who is disabled.

The local authority may ignore the value of the house if it is the permanent home of a carer.

At the moment, if my Dad was taken into care, his home should be ignored as his wife lives in it.

If Dad has passed on, and Mum is taken into care, it should still be ignored, as I live in it and have been their carer.

The above ties in with what my local authority website says

 

[PurplePoppy]

Thanks for your post Nada. I will check out my local branch.

Nebiroth, as my dad is living in the family home, they cannot make him sell up, but can say that when he dies or if he decided to move, then they can have half the money. That's our understanding anyway.