Mum's situation has changed again, advice needed

[Cathy67]

Mum's situation has changed yet again, she was put in a care home in mid March after spending four months in hospital. Initially this was supposed to be temporary as she had improved mentally to almost her old self while in hospital. However once in the care home she rapidly deteriorated until in early August we were told she was to be assessed. She was and was sent to a special dementia unit, again we were told this was only temporary but three months later she is still there, supposed to be in our home town but as there wasn't a place she is in somewhere about 20 miles away.

I received a phone message from someone a few weeks ago, possibly a social worker who said that mum is now under section 117 and her care is now free. Also she was trying to find a new home for mum (the old one kept her room but had to close it eventually).

We are due to have a financial assessment on 20th November, as we (my brother and I) now have the LPA. I am still not sure how many bank/building society accounts mum has as they don't send statements very often. I had a rather threatening letter the other day from the county council about the fees not having been paid (don't the departments talk to each other??!!) £9,725 is owing. Also, does the first 12 week disregard apply to mum and can we pay the amount in instalments?

Sorry this is so long, I hope someone can advise on these two matters, thank you in advance.

 

[Lindy50]

Hi Cathy

I am sorry you find yourself in this situation. The 'authorities' really should be better at communication, shouldn't they?

If your mum is on section 117, all care she has received while under that section must, as you know, be free ( it is equivalent to NHS care).

So where does the £9000+ come from? Is this from before she was under section 117?

I am sorry, I cannot say whether the 12 week disregard applies, but I would strongly suggest that you a) find out the dates your mum has been on section 117 and b) start digging to find out about those bank accounts. You'll need to know eventually, anyway....

Sorry I can't be more helpful. I wish you good luck in negotiating the 'system'

Lindy xx

 

[PeggySmith]

We were in a similar but different situation when MIL first went into a nursing home. I eventually struck upon a very helpful young man in the LA's finance department who helped me sort it out.

Yes, the 12 weeks disregard should apply but she might have been required to make a contribution if self-funded.

If the LA haven't done a financial assessment yet then NOBODY knows how much your mum owes.

They don't just pick on individuals, I recently found out that it took MIL's NH over a year to get the LA to pay the FNC she'd been awarded.

Good luck - it's just an extra thing on top of the real worries you have about your mum and only money after all.

 

[Pete R]

Mum's situation has changed yet again, she was put in a care home in mid March after spending four months in hospital. Initially this was supposed to be temporary as she had improved mentally to almost her old self while in hospital. However once in the care home she rapidly deteriorated until in early August we were told she was to be assessed. She was and was sent to a special dementia unit, again we were told this was only temporary but three months later she is still there, supposed to be in our home town but as there wasn't a place she is in somewhere about 20 miles away..

My Mom is currently in temporary care and the LA have broken the rules from the start.
Temporary care should be funded by the LA but they can ask your Mum to contribute straight away which requires a means test or for the first 8 weeks ask your Mum to pay a certain amount. After the 8 weeks they have to do a means test anyway. The means test is fairly different to a permanent resident as amongst other things it does not include the property your Mum was living in, although the upper and lower limits stay the same.

Either requires someone to agree to it.

Age UK fact Sheet 58 explains more but I cannot upload it for some reason

We are due to have a financial assessment on 20th November, as we (my brother and I) now have the LPA. I am still not sure how many bank/building society accounts mum has as they don't send statements very often.

https://www.mylostaccount.org.uk/

This free service, paid for by the banks etc, can help with finding lost accounts. It can take a few months though.

I had a rather threatening letter the other day from the county council about the fees not having been paid (don't the departments talk to each other??!!) £9,725 is owing. Also, does the first 12 week disregard apply to mum and can we pay the amount in instalments?

The 12 week disregard only comes in to play when it is deemed that your Mum becomes a permanent resident. It starts from the permanent date and not whilst in temporary care.

If no one has agreed to paying any contribution I would not worry about having to pay the £9,725 in instalments and be asking the LA to explain how they got to that amount.

Hope that helps and Good Luck

 

[retiredcopper]

Re the bank accounts - if they are 'live' accounts (used recently) My Lost Account may not find them (as they are usually dormant accounts that they search for). Do you know which account is used for any direct debits for bills? In which case are there any bank statements for that account? If not, you can request back dated ones from the bank then look through them to see if any regular payments are being made for the same sum that aren't utilities etc - these may be a regular savings account & the bank will tell you where they are paid to. Failing that, are all the pensions/benefits going into that account? If not, contact the DWP or private pension company to ask which account they are being paid into. Lastly, elderly people sometimes open different accounts with the same institution (my MIL has 4 savings accounts with the same building society) so it's worth asking the institutions you are aware of if there are any other accounts in your mum's name.

 

[shorba]

Mum's situation has changed yet again, she was put in a care home in mid March after spending four months in hospital. Initially this was supposed to be temporary as she had improved mentally to almost her old self while in hospital. However once in the care home she rapidly deteriorated until in early August we were told she was to be assessed. She was and was sent to a special dementia unit, again we were told this was only temporary but three months later she is still there, supposed to be in our home town but as there wasn't a place she is in somewhere about 20 miles away.

I received a phone message from someone a few weeks ago, possibly a social worker who said that mum is now under section 117 and her care is now free. Also she was trying to find a new home for mum (the old one kept her room but had to close it eventually).

We are due to have a financial assessment on 20th November, as we (my brother and I) now have the LPA. I am still not sure how many bank/building society accounts mum has as they don't send statements very often. I had a rather threatening letter the other day from the county council about the fees not having been paid (don't the departments talk to each other??!!) £9,725 is owing. Also, does the first 12 week disregard apply to mum and can we pay the amount in instalments?

Sorry this is so long, I hope someone can advise on these two matters, thank you in advance.

Hi Cathy, Hope you get everything sorted out, the only thing i can suggest is that
you or some family member apply for power of attorney so that you can deal with the finance side of things.

 

[Cathy67]

Thank you everybody for your replies.

Lindy, yes, mum was sectioned at the beginning of September I believe and the fees are what has built up from when she was first taken into the home in March. I'm going into town Friday to see what account(s) she has at Lloyds as I think she has several with them!

Retiredcopper, mum appears to have a number of different accounts with several banks and building societies which is what makes it so confusing! Two accounts I definitely know about are ones that direct debits for the bills come out of. It is rather annoying that I have asked for monthly statements and they said they would send them (Halifax) but they don't come in that often!

Hopefully after going to town later on today I will be a bit more clearer about things!