Reasonable Expenditure

wkjvroberts

Registered User
May 29, 2015
1
0
My wife moved into a Care Home earlier this year and we are pleased with the care.
She has more than the allowed savings and therefore I have to pay from her savings for the Care. I have written to the Local Authority to clarify what I can spend. e.g. She has lost a lot of weight, so how much can I spend on buying new clothes in a smaller size £500 per year £1000 What is reasonable. As the home is a round trip of over 40 miles with no access by public transport what can I claim for reasonable expenses for petrol? Car insurance? etc. As the house is in joint names can I pay 50 of insurance and maintenance costs to protect my wife's assets. I have simply got a reply that says I can spend money on "reasonable" items, but nobody will define reasonable in any specific terms. Tried Alzheimer's Society and Age UK but similar response.
Anybody had this question answered for them? Keith
 

cragmaid

Registered User
Oct 18, 2010
7,936
0
North East England
Hello and welcome to TP.
I acted for my late Mum under a POA. I used to buy her clothes etc as and when needed...and she had shrunk by more than 4 sizes. I used to go to M&S and other stores, buy the same things as she had done...she loved new clothes. She too was self funding, I never asked permission from the LA, I simply paid from her account as normal and kept the receipts. I also paid her insurance and maintenance for her house until it was sold, from her account, again I sought no permission....to me that came under the heading of Unavoidable( but Necessary) Expenditure. I was never asked to produce statements or figures during the three years Mum was in the Care Home.
When it was birthday or Christmas time, I also paid out the same sort of sums to her grandchildren as she had always done.

Hope this helps.
 

nitram

Registered User
Apr 6, 2011
30,075
0
Bury
For clothing I would just buy sufficient clothing remembering the turn round time plus the occasional 'temporally lost in the system' of the laundry process.
As guidance if your wife was LA funded she would have a personal expenses allowance (PEA) of £24.90/Wk. I would class buying a new wardrobe of clothes to be exceptional and in addition to this - LA's are allowed to increase the PEA for exceptional expenditure.

As for insurance and maintenance of the house that I assume you are now living in see this recent thread.http://forum.alzheimers.org.uk/showthread.php?82914-Pensions&p=1107505&viewfull=1#post1107505

For help with transport cost I would calculate an amount and ask the LA finance dept. if they considered that specific amount to be reasonable, say the journeys are in your wife's best interests.
 

AlsoConfused

Registered User
Sep 17, 2010
1,952
0
When you're charging mileage costs for visiting, use a figure put forward by a respected motoring organisation (eg AA or RAC) and confirm on your notes that's what you're doing. SS can't argue with those figures. Also, using the "approved" figures means you don't under-estimate your motoring costs - most people forget abut depreciation, insurance and servicing charges.
 

nitram

Registered User
Apr 6, 2011
30,075
0
Bury
I'd only claim for extra petrol used.
I think the chance of getting anything is slim and the LA will just say 'no' to a claim based on AA/RAC rates. They are most unlikely to offer a lesser amount.
 

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