Government plans Lasting Powers of Attorney day - how ridiculous!

[Pete R]

I think public bodies and indeed other institutions have to be very careful to avoid any hint that they are giving financial advice, which is a regulated activity.

HMRC seem to manage fine.

I have also found that those that administer the benefit system to be more than helpful in helping people claim for what they entitled to even if they did not know it was available.

I think it is reasonable to expect individuals to take responsibility for their own financial decisions and that includes doing the research yourself (or paying for an appropriately qualified financial adviser).

All well and good if you are able to do the research yourself or are fortunate enough to be able to afford an FA. However many people need help and forgive me for thinking that is what the government and their/OUR various agencies are for.

Surely those that attempt to help others understand this new and complicated world they find themselves in should be applauded? Just to start the ball rolling Pickles53 I think you do a sterling job in the "Legal and Financial" forum. It really would be shame if your experience and knowledge echoed your statement above.

Obviously those in government realise there is a problem with LA's not giving out enough information as the draft "Care & Support Bill" attempted to highlight.............

Responsibilities of local authorities

The draft Bill proposes a 'broader care and support role' for local authorities.
They must:

• provide an information and advice service to help people understand how the care and support system works, what services are available locally, and how to access the services they need now and might do in the future ..........................

Among its key recommendations the Committee calls for:

• A national campaign to raises awareness of what the national care and support offer is, how people can plan and prepare for their own care needs, and what rights they have to care and support.

• Information and advice for all (including self funders) about support, care planning and housing options.

• Provision of independent financial advice about the different options available to pay for care, including deferred payment arrangements.

(My bolding)

 

[Pickles53]

PeteR you make some interesting points.

I should first say that I didn't intend to imply that there was anything illegal by using the term 'loophole'. The tax code is so complicated that there are all kinds of ways in which an individual or company can reduce their tax. There is a difference between 'tax evasion' which is illegal and 'tax avoidance' which is not, though over the last few years the latter is increasingly criticised in public debate eg where it relates to large companies moving profits to low tax jurisdictions.

I would draw a distinction between a community like TP, where we are effectively a peer group trying to help each other, and an 'official' body giving advice which could be held accountable for giving the 'wrong' advice. There are some extremely knowledgeable folk on TP and I would say people posting questions are doing their own research and trying to work the best solutions for their circumstances.

I had not read enough about the new Care Act to appreciate that it places a wider duty on LAs to provide more information and financial advice, so thanks for posting that. I wonder how narrowly this requirement will be interpreted though and whether LAs will have the resources to fulfil this role adequately in top of everything else.

 

[WILLIAMR]

Putting a house in to tenants in common ownership is in no way a loophole.
A parent should have a right to say who will benefit from their part of the estate.
As I have said before my mother wanted her part of the estate to go to her own family and not have the possibility of it going to another family because Dad got married again.


William

 

[Moonflower]

I really don't want to get into an argument about this and will shut up after this post.
A parent might well want their surviving spouse to be able to use the house, or its proceeds if sold, to procure the best possible care should they need it.
It's all very well saying "take the LA funding and pay top up" but unless SS/LA agree that a care home is needed there isn't any LA funding.

For example my mother was miserable, lonely, had anxiety so bad it made daily activities virtually impossible. No sense of danger and no short term memory, hallucinations etc etc etc. The LA would have made her work through carer visits at home - which she wouldn't have accepted - then a move to some kind of sheltered housing before they would have considered funding a care home place.

Mum wasn't really capable of organising her own care, but she could clearly and lucidly state that she only wanted to move once. Selling her house made that possible.
Yes of course she would have wanted to leave the house as an inheritance. No I don't agree that people with dementia should have to fund their own care. But I really don't agree that tenants in common ownership in order to shelter a house as an asset is universally good advice. It may well be best for some families, but not all.

And I'd be very very wary of recommending it when it may be best for the offspring and NOT for the person with dementia. Who is, as we all know, vulnerable enough.

 

[LYN T]

Well I won't argue with you Moonflower. You only have to read some of the heartbreaking posts on this Forum to know that SS's/LA's drag their heels and don't listen to the concerns of relatives when it comes to CH's/NH's.

A while ago (sorry I've forgotten who posted) a TP er said the best thing a parent can say to their children is 'if I need a CH just sell the house and live your lives' so much better than having no resources to fund care and having all the worry of a parent living on their own at a certain point in the illness.Money talks-so care can be arranged without the authorities input. I'm not in any way saying this is right-but it's a fact of life. I will also now shut up Moonflower (well I hope so anyway). I don't quite know how a thread about LPA's has gone so off topic

 

[SerenaS]

Indeed, this discussion does seem to have gone off topic, so I've made the decision to close it.

Members are free to share their experiences on Talking Point, we just ask that replies are relevant to the original discussion topic, to avoid unnecessary confusion.