Advice for Beginner

sasha98

Registered User
Jul 24, 2013
1
0
Grimsby
My Auntie passed away 3 weeks ago and my Uncle who was in hospital with a broken hip has advanced Alzheimers at 92.
My Aunt & Uncle made a will but as my uncle is under the care of Social Services due to a neighbour telling them there was no relatives, I have no power to do anything although they are being very good and allowing me to make decisions regarding his care. He is now in a lovely care home and receiving alot of attention.
I need to go to the court of protection to get control of his affairs including his property, financial affairs and well being.
I am the only one who has visited him and bought new clothes to fit his weight loss and arranged for new shoes to be bought as his feet swell in this weather and his other shoes are too tight.
Where do I start as I have some very overbearing siblings who have partners who just dictate but think this is about financial gain. I just want my uncle to have the best possible care and quality of life for as long as he is with us.
Can anyone give me advice on the first steps of what to do in applying to help him and carry out what I know would be their wishes.
 

Aquamanda

Registered User
Jan 8, 2012
225
0
My Auntie passed away 3 weeks ago and my Uncle who was in hospital with a broken hip has advanced Alzheimers at 92.
My Aunt & Uncle made a will but as my uncle is under the care of Social Services due to a neighbour telling them there was no relatives, I have no power to do anything although they are being very good and allowing me to make decisions regarding his care. He is now in a lovely care home and receiving alot of attention.
I need to go to the court of protection to get control of his affairs including his property, financial affairs and well being.
I am the only one who has visited him and bought new clothes to fit his weight loss and arranged for new shoes to be bought as his feet swell in this weather and his other shoes are too tight.
Where do I start as I have some very overbearing siblings who have partners who just dictate but think this is about financial gain. I just want my uncle to have the best possible care and quality of life for as long as he is with us.
Can anyone give me advice on the first steps of what to do in applying to help him and carry out what I know would be their wishes.
I am not sure how you would start with this. It sounds as if you are a very caring person with your uncle's best interests at heart. The only thing I would say is if he is being looked after in a very good care home and being overseen by Social Services, is it essential that you take over control of his affairs? The reason I am asking is that I am wondering if your siblings might somehow get together and put up some sort of objection to you having sole control of things. If they do, that would be horrible for you. Also, what would happen if they raised objections and then somehow they ended up having joint control with you? That could be a lot worse in the long run for your uncle rather than an independent body overseeing things. Maybe that is something you could find out about before you go ahead, as from what you have said in your post, it sounds likely to me that they will raise objections, so would it be so terrible to leave things as they are? I am sure that if you need money to buy clothes etc there would be some way you could be reimbursed as I believe your uncle would be allowed some personal spending money. I am honestly not saying that you should not have the control; I am just thinking how upset you would be if your siblings ganged up against you, and he does seem to be well cared for at the moment. And I assume it may cost money for you to pursue this - am not sure about that side of things. But your uncle is very lucky to have you looking out for him. Best of luck.
 

sue38

Registered User
Mar 6, 2007
10,849
0
55
Wigan, Lancs
Hi Sasha and welcome to Talking Point :).

If you are wanting to access funds only to pay for essentials (clothes, toiletries and so on) you might look into being an appointee for your uncle's pension and other benefits. Have a look at this factsheet

If you're looking to deal with your uncle's property, paying care fees and so on, you would need to apply for Deputyship (assuming your uncle doesn't have the capacity to sign a Lasting Power of Attorney). Have a look at this overview from Direct Gov which has links to documents outlining the procedure.
 

Delphie

Registered User
Dec 14, 2011
1,268
0
Hi sasha:)

The Deputyship application isn't hugely complicated. Some people get a solicitor to do it but it's the same set of forms whoever is doing it. The answers you'll need to supply are facts about your uncle's circumstances so it's not about understanding the finer points of the law. You can also apply to be exempt from the application fee if your income is low and there is a helpline and email address for asking questions if you're not sure of something.

One word of warning, you will need to notify your siblings and possibly other people of the application and if someone objects to you being a Deputy things might get tricky. Given enough conflict, the Court is likely to appoint someone of their choosing, like a solicitor. This has attached costs because while as a Deputy your time given to sorting things out for your uncle will be free, a solicitor will charge.

As has been said, if it's just a question of looking after benefits, then an Appointeeship is easier and quicker, and much less regulated. I've been through both processes and it's all quite do-able.
 

Jilly1

Registered User
Jul 22, 2013
66
0
Nottinghamshire
My Auntie passed away 3 weeks ago and my Uncle who was in hospital with a broken hip has advanced Alzheimers at 92.
My Aunt & Uncle made a will but as my uncle is under the care of Social Services due to a neighbour telling them there was no relatives, I have no power to do anything although they are being very good and allowing me to make decisions regarding his care. He is now in a lovely care home and receiving alot of attention.
I need to go to the court of protection to get control of his affairs including his property, financial affairs and well being.
I am the only one who has visited him and bought new clothes to fit his weight loss and arranged for new shoes to be bought as his feet swell in this weather and his other shoes are too tight.
Where do I start as I have some very overbearing siblings who have partners who just dictate but think this is about financial gain. I just want my uncle to have the best possible care and quality of life for as long as he is with us.
Can anyone give me advice on the first steps of what to do in applying to help him and carry out what I know would be their wishes.

Have you googled Court of Protection and asking them how to about things?
 

Saffie

Registered User
Mar 26, 2011
22,513
0
Near Southampton
You can also apply to be exempt from the application fee if your income is low and there is a helpline and email address for asking questions if you're not sure of something.
In actual fact, you don't have to pay at all. The whole cost of the Deputyship would be paid from your uncle's money. Alternatively, you would pay for the initial application which is £400 but you would automatically receive this back from your uncle.

It isn't that difficult to arrange but there is a lot of form-filling. I managed it myself as have done a number of other TPers. The forms are available from the Court of Protection but are available online too at the Justice website too.
 

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