What is the ‘Pay when you die scheme’?

At the moment up to 40,000 people per year are forced to sell their homes to pay for care costs. However, as of July this year it was announced that a new scheme is coming into action by 2015. This new scheme called ‘pay when you die’ is aiming to allow elderly people to stay in their homes and receive care rather than having to sell their homes to pay for care costs. Health secretary Andrew Lansley said: “Our plans will end the scandal of people being forced to sell their home to pay for their care. From 2015, everyone will be able to get a loan instead of having to sell their home while they are alive. I recognise that we can go further. We can enable people not to lose everything they have worked and saved for if they need care for several years.” In other words, watch this space. What the scheme will do is enable people to get a loan to cover the costs of their care from their local authority whilst they are alive and this money is then recovered from their estate when they die.

The White Paper also set out plans to:

 

• Abolish the postcode lottery for social care by bringing in a national threshold for access
• Introduced rules that will make it harder for councils to permit home help visits of only 15 minutes
• Announced plans to provide millions of pounds to help people stay in their own homes
• Stated that the government is considering free social care for the terminally-ill to help them stay at home. 

Ministers also want to cap the amount the elderly and disabled have to pay for their care but have yet to come to any agreement as to how best to do this. Michael Kitts, partner, government and public sector, at PricewaterhouseCoopers, says some progress has been made, but 'many questions remain unanswered' and the issue of future funding has not been properly addressed. ‘There is still lots of uncertainty. For example, the level, and application of any cap on care costs; how residual costs beyond the cap are funded by local authorities and others, and the practical details of loan schemes, such as how local authorities can fund the cost of care, which will be an immediate requirement, pending the agreement of any loan. But local authorities cannot wait until all of this becomes clear to take action. The demographic shift and demand for care services is not going away. By 2033, a tenth of the population will be over 75.'

In the meantime Andrew Lansley also said they were going to implement ‘consistent criteria for access to care and support, and we’re going to build quality into this system where we stop contracting by the minute and we give quality ratings on care providers and we’re going to give people much more control of their own care – personal budgets for everybody and information and advice to help them to secure to care and support they need’.

So it seems that there may been cause to belief that care costs will get easier to manage, however, there is still a way to go. But for now it is reassuring to know that at least we are heading in the right direction. For more in depth advice on this new scheme and on how it may affect you do not hesitate to get in touch with one of us and we will try and answer our questions as thoroughly as possible.


All content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only. The owner of this blog makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

For further information and advice on this scheme please call 01242 255125 or email us at joan@graysgroup.co.uk. Visit www.graysgroup.co.uk to see our range of services.

Care Home Fees– what do you pay for and when are you entitled to funding?

As explained in our previous article ‘What do care homes cost in today’s day and age?’ before you move into a care home your local authority will carry out an assessment to work out how much you will be paying towards your care. This assessment will be based upon your Income and savings – referred to as capital - and will determine how much you will have to fund your care and how much your local authority will fund. The areas being assessed can include:

• Bank and building society statements
• National Savings and Premium Bond certificates
• Details of any stocks, shares and any other financial products you own
• Your pension entitlements
• Property you own and its current value unless occupied by your partner, a relative over 60 or incapacitated, or a child under 16 you or a former partner as a lone parent are liable to maintain.

Your capital and income will determine how much support you will receive. If your capital is assessed as being under £23,250 then you should be entitled to support from your local authority. If you have a capital which is under £14,250 you should be able to receive maximum support although you will still contribute your income. If your capital is assessed as being over the £23,250 upper limit then you may be told you have to be a self-funder and you are not entitled to help from the local authority. If your capital falls to the £23,250 mark after this assessment you should then be entitled to support once they have done another means-tested assessment. If your capital is between £14,250 and £23,250 you will pay a capital tariff of around £1 for each £250 as it will be deemed income. The example they use on the NHS website is that if you are assessed as having a capital of £15,250 you will be treated as having £4 extra income per week.
 

Even if your capital is below £23,250 and the local authority will be contributing to your care you should still be able to choose which home you would like to go to. It could even be abroad as long as the home falls within the price the social services are willing to pay and it provides the care you have been assessed to be in need of. As a resident you will always have £22.30 per week which is called a personal expenses allowance so you have money to buy personal items, toiletries and small presents etc. If you wish to live in a more expensive home then the additional price must be paid by a third party it cannot be paid by yourself. You may also be able to claim Attendance Allowance, this is a non-means tested benefit that pays £71.40 per week if you need care day and night or £47.80 if you need care by day or night. This is applicable even if your capital is assessed as being over the £23,250 and you can also claim the NHS nursing contribution which is £108.70 per week (this figure only applies to England, other areas may differ) if you are moving to a nursing home.
 

If you feel you have specific care needs or a Doctor has recommended it you will also need a care assessment to determine what type of care it is you are likely to need. This care assessment is officially known as ‘section 47 care assessment’ and you will need to get in touch with your Adult Services department of your local authority for this assessment. This assessment will usually need a report by your GP sent directly to the Adult Services Department detailing your potential medical needs along with whatever else that particular department may require, it is always best to talk to them directly.

 

All of the above is only a generalised brief summary and is not necessarily a true representation of your particular case. To make sure you make the best decisions for yourself based on needs, changes in legislation and regulations please get in touch with us directly as to how you would best move forward. You can go to the NHS website to find a care home near you by following the link: www.nhs.uk/carersdirect/guide/practicalsupport/pages/carehomes alternatively you can all the NHS run service Carers Direct on 0808 802 0202. This is open 9am -8pm Monday to Friday (except bank holidays) and 11am-4pm at weekends. Calls are free from UK landlines and mobiles or you can request a free call back on the website if you click on the link above.

All figures found in this article are from the NHS website.

 

All content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only. The owner of this blog makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

This policy is subject to change at anytime.

 

If you would like further information on how to plan for your future call us on 01242 255 125 or email us on joan@graysgroup.co.uk.

What do Care Homes cost in this day and age?

The prospect of paying for care homes can seem a daunting one, especially when it appears that so many factors go into assessing out how much exactly you will be paying. First off the cost of care will depend on whereabouts in the UK you live and also if you will require nursing; this can mean there may be substantial variations in cost.

Average annual UK care home fees 2011/12

Region/Cost per annum	With nursing care	Without nursing care
London	£44,200	£35,308
East Anglia	£38,272	£28,808
Southern Home Counties	£41,912	£30,316
Northern Home Counties	£45,084	£31,564
South West	£40,872	£27,144
West Midlands	£36,400	£24,440
East Midlands	£33,800	£25,376
North West	£33,644	£26,648
Yorkshire & Humber	£33,800	£25,116
North	£30,628	£25,324
Wales	£33,592	£24,544
Scotland	£34,944	£29,432
Northern Ireland	£28,756	£24,232

Source: Laing & Buisson, Care of Elderly People Report 2011/12.

Please be aware the above figures are regional averages. Some care homes may charge considerably more.

It is worth bearing in mind that although at first you may not need nursing this may well change in the future. Therefore looking at this table it is reasonable to assume that you can expect to pay on average more than £27,200 per year for residential care homes and over £37,500 for nursing as well. How much of this total sum you will have to fund yourself is worked out via a financial assessment by your local council (this is explained in further detail in our next article ‘To pay or not to pay – what do you pay for and when are you entitled to funding?’) where they will look at your income and capital and decide how much you have to pay towards the care home fees. The average cost of residential care is £2716 per month and many people in the south of England already pay £5000 or more each month for their care. This is expected to double over the next twenty years. This is obviously a lot of money and if you are one of the millions of people who think this is unfair on those who have worked hard to provide for themselves and their family look out for our article ‘How can I alleviate the cost of care?’ and we will go through some of the ways you can cut costs as much as possible. These figures only cover the basic residential costs and on top of this you may also have to pay for clothing, toiletries, personal items, trips, treats and telephone calls.

All content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only. The owner of this blog makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

This policy is subject to change at anytime.

For further information on how to alleviate the cost of care, call us now on 01242 255 125 or email us at joan@graysgroup.co.uk. Grays Group also provide other services such as Wills and Estate Planning if you'd like to know more why not visit our website www.graysgroup.co.uk.

What is Power of Attorney

 

A power of attorney is very similar to a will except that where a will manages your affairs if you die, a power of attorney manages your affairs if you are incapacitated.If, at some point in the future, you suffer from some illness, dementia or injury that leaves you unable to manage your own affairs, then life can become very frustrating for those trying to care for you, particularly if they need to sell your house or cash-in your savings and investments to pay for your care. Even the daily chore of collecting pensions and paying bills can become impossible if nobody has the authority to represent you.
A power of attorney clears the way for those that you’ve appointed to deal with your financial affairs easily, making their life much less difficult. And, it’s much better than the alternative which is to place you under the control of the Court of Protection, meaning that your affairs will be managed by a “Deputy” appointed by the Court.

We can create a Power of Attorney for you at a fixed price of just £349. We’ll keep this on file for you and then if you need to use the documents at some point in the future, we can register them with the authorities then.

We know your free time is precious and you don’t want to have to take time off work to visit our office. We fit in with you. We can visit you in your own home at a time convenient to you. There is no need to take time off work or to allow the process of crteating a power of attorney, a chore.

Grays provide a local, friendly personal service at a very competitive price.

For further information or to arrange a meeting to see how we can help call 01242 255 125 or email us at joan@graysgroup.co.uk.