arghh bureaucracy....

[Helly68]

Well, I know I am not alone, but saddened to hear all this. C tax is a real issue. We did the exemption, because Mummy was living in a care home by then so daddy got a reduction. The very fact that there are different terms/situations that can occur, none of which are publicised or exp,gained makes me feel councils just want the money and would much rather you didn't know. In my borough the council don't even deal with the claims as they get a private firm to do them, meaning you have no way to contact anyone.....
My Dad and I got the Ladybird Book of Red tape- a funny satirical take on all this and laughed because it was so true......

 

[witts1973]

we were left with a bill of £53 a month for council tax,I live here and always have done so I pay this amount which is still quite a lot for somebody on carers allowance

 

[Helly68]

we were left with a bill of £53 a month for council tax,I live here and always have done so I pay this amount which is still quite a lot for somebody on carers allowance

That's not good. As each area is different, very hard to know what you should be paying

 

[witts1973]

I sent a letter with each P.O.A sent to utilities etc,explaining that is was not to be kept by them just to be scanned and kept on file as the original needs to be retained by the attorney

 

[kindred]

The people on the desks at the bank often dont know what to do about POA.
Book an appointment with the bank manager, say that its to register POA and ask what you need to bring (usually the POA and some identification). You shouldnt have to bring your mum at all

Absolutely, canary. This is all I needed when I went. They have some NEW PROTOCOL now, alas, though that takes time. Though I pressed for a registration THERE AND THEN and they did manage to do it ...LIFE!!

 

[jknight]

Not really a question but a bit of a rant. Apologies if this seems very small issues compared to what some people are going through....

I just find the bureaucracy, at a time when you want to spend as much time with a loved one as possible, a mountain.
POA requests that "get lost" by the bank. Three months now I have been trying to get access to an account...if they ask me to "bring my mother in" as other places "helpfully" suggested, I may scream...

Trying to understand why a GP has increased my Mum's drugs - waiting for a call back but there are so many people involved in this one it is hard to know if you are speaking to the right person...

The battle we had with the Local Authority to claim the Council Tax discount we were entitled to.....we got it, but they did their best to make sure no one knows they can apply and the applications system is as difficult as possible, especially for people unused to the internet....

And all the time the possibility of increasing care home charges as my Mum's condition deteriorates. I understand they have to do this, it is just no one seems to know if and when the charges may increase...

I could go on.....
Surely there must be a way to make this stuff easier for carers....

I completely understand. The amount of time I spend on admin is huge. A good example is today. Mum recieved a letter saying her direct debit hadn't been taken for 3 months. I rang the bank & they confirmed there was no problem at their end. I rang the insurance company and they blamed the bank. I asked for their details so I could pay the missing 3 months. I went to the bank to pay. The bank said the account details were wrong. I went home and rang the insurance company. Explained absolutely everything again. Got the right details. Went back to the bank and paid.
Got back to mum's and found a letter from another insurance that needed investigating and a letter saying she needed an eye test. She had one less than 12 months ago......

 

[Helly68]

I completely understand. The amount of time I spend on admin is huge. A good example is today. Mum recieved a letter saying her direct debit hadn't been taken for 3 months. I rang the bank & they confirmed there was no problem at their end. I rang the insurance company and they blamed the bank. I asked for their details so I could pay the missing 3 months. I went to the bank to pay. The bank said the account details were wrong. I went home and rang the insurance company. Explained absolutely everything again. Got the right details. Went back to the bank and paid.
Got back to mum's and found a letter from another insurance that needed investigating and a letter saying she needed an eye test. She had one less than 12 months ago......

It drives you up the wall doesn't it? As if we don't have enough to do already....