Question about DPA

Evoque

Registered User
Mar 14, 2017
54
0
Hello all. It’s been a while since I posted ... Mum went into a care home in March, just before lockdown, and she appears to have settled in nicely, although only recently have I been allowed to visit, on a socially-distant, outdoors basis, once a week. Well, it’s better than nothing!

The question I have is about the Deferred Payment Agreement that I have had to set up, because I was unable to sell her flat during the 12 week “disregard” period, for obvious reasons!

Now, the council have agreed to a deferred payment scheme, based on the value of Mum’s flat, and based on the knowledge that they can contribute only c. #400 a week towards it and the rest is billed to me (as her power of attorney), to be deferred until her flat is sold. It comes to about #900/week. Care homes aren’t cheap!!!!

Does anyone else have experience of a DPA? Do I have to repay the #400/week on top of the remaining #900/week when I’ve sold Mum’s flat, or is the council paying the #400/week without any view to getting it back? I’m just puzzled as to why they have split the payments like that. I thought we’d have to pay it all back once the flat is sold.

Thanks in advance

Evoque
 

Louise7

Volunteer Host
Mar 25, 2016
4,693
0
@Evoque We've got a DPA on mum's house (just sold) and the local authority pay the care home fees directly then send us an invoice each month for the amount they have paid to the home so that we know exactly how much there is to pay back when the house is sold (the deferred amount). Mum's pensions are also paid directly to the care home - they invoice her monthly (via me as POA).

I suggest that you go back to the local authority and query the amounts they have quoted as when we got our DPA contract through they'd made a right 'pig's ear' of the calculations (to put it mildly). Due to the initial calculation errors they were not paying the care home enough so the care home was chasing the local authority for payment of arrears owed and the local authority were suggesting that the family could pay these as some sort of top-up! It took around 9 months for the problem to be sorted out.

Make sure that you know exactly how much the care home fees are monthly, how much the local authority will be paying to the care home (the amount you will have to repay) and how much your mum will be expected to contribute herself. I doubt very much that your local authority are paying £400 weekly without any view to getting it back. Make sure that you get the figures confirmed and go through the DPA agreement/contract with a fine tooth comb before you sign it just in case you have a local authority like mum's who don't appear to have a calculator :(
 

nitram

Registered User
Apr 6, 2011
30,078
0
Bury
I agree contact the LA and get them to explain everything.

You appear to be typing # instead of £.
You are probably using the US keyboard
400px-KB_United_States-NoAltGr.svg.png

and not the UK one, is @ also incorrect?
400px-KB_United_Kingdom.svg.png

If it annoys you and you want to change google

change keyboard <operating system>
 

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