Inheritance and care home fees

[Hateam]

Hello!

My mother-in-law is in a care home.

My wife, her daughter, is also in a care home for medical - non age related- issues. My council are paying for my wife's care as we have under £24500 in savings.

When my MIL dies (she's 94) my wife will inherit about £180,000.

We don't want this money going to Essex CC.

Is there anything we can?

Could my MIL's will be changed to remove my wife and replace her with me? She is still of sound mind.

Could the money go into an account in my sole name?

I am aware of the concept of deprivation of assets.

Why don't you want Essex County Council to receive funds for your wife's care, if the funds are available?

I think YABU to try and hide the money and get the council to pay for your wife’s care when she could pay herself. If she has true medical needs as part of her care have you explored nhs continuing healthcare?
Also look into the cap that the government were going to introduce. It may mean you don’t lose the whole lot to her care costs.

Hopefully there is not a loophole in the law that allows you to walk off with your wife's inheritance while the local authority pays to look after her.

While Essex County Council’s has unveiled a balanced budget for 2023/24, the authority faces a gap between its funding and expenditure of £19 million next year.
A report to go before the council’s cabinet said: “After delivering 100 per cent of all existing planned savings, the gap is expected to be £19 million in 2024/25 rising to £75 million by 2026/27, before further tax rises."

It's very early on in the process.

Continuing health care is an avenue I haven't looked at yet.

I hadn't heard of the cap. I'll look into that - thank you.

I'm baffled why you named the council as this must make you fairly identifiable.

I am tremendously sorry for everything your family is going through but I am not sure why you should get a stack of cash to avoid it going to the council?

I’m confused. If your wife will have funds to pay for her care, a huge inheritance, why should tax payers fund it instead?

If it goes in an account in your name, you are married, so make no difference.

Does she have other children?

Do you have children?

If she wishes the money to benefit her daughter I would suggest she take independent advice on perhaps a trust to pay an annual amount if she is to be in long term care with the rest going towards her fees.

When you say 'we' don't want this money going to Essex County Council for your wife's care. Who do you want to pay for her care?

So taxpayers have to fund it instead while you bank £180k? What will she use £180k for while she’s in care - have you got plans for it?

Well the other option is taking your wife out of the care home and using the £180k to look after your herself or pay for a private team of carers. Then you won't have to pay the council.

Surely your wife's care is your first priority??

I completely understand the difference: we all grow old (barring earlier misfortune) and fair enough to support ourselves in old age frailty if we have the means.

But earlier need, due to disability or disease is surely what our welfare state is for? People with an inheritance don’t suddenly become liable to pay for massively expensive operations.

This isn’t ‘Legal’ and I am not a lawyer but I think it might be a good idea for your MIL to talk to a solicitor. Parents of children with disabilities sometimes leave money ‘in trust’ I think, to avoid the children’s future means tested benefits being compromised.

You wife is a vulnerable adult and you want to take her inheritance and put it in an account in which you have sole access. This sounds so dodgy. Pretty sure it would be fraud.

If you have children, ask MiL if she would will any remaining funds directly to them.

Both my MIL & FIL went into care homes, MIL for 12 years and FIL for 5 years, they had 400k in property and bank combined and it all went onto their care and we didn’t mind one bit!

We couldn’t care for them at home due to the seriousness of the illnesses so it’s only fair the care home had it, they were amazing at the level of care they provided to them both at such a difficult time for us as a family and we will always be thankful to them for that

I suppose you can see if you can arrange a CHC if their money is that important to you, otherwise either take them out of the care homes and look into care at home or let them pay for their care

Why do you not want to use your wife's money to pay for her care? Bit odd.

If your wife has capacity to make financial decisions it is her decision not yours. Also it's not your money.

Its your MILs money and up to her who she leaves it to. She can change her will at anytime whilst she is of sound mind. In your case if she changes her will, she should involve a solicitor.

If Mil leaves the money to her daughter it will go for care fees.

If you have children the will could leave her assets to them in a trust which will not lead to the children being liable for the care home fees.

If you are married, the funds would be a marital asset and pay for the care home.

if you are divorced and you inherit the money you are not liable for the fees. However, if you are very recently divorced or try to do this now you are likely to face investigations as to whether this forms intention to deprive your wife of assets. I’m not sure what the outcome would be.

The system in this country is that people have to pay for their own care, though personally I can understand how galling it is to have to hand over a life changing amount of money.

Essex county council will not be paying for your wife’s care.

We will.

The tax payer.

Whilst you sit there with the cash, pretending her money isn’t yours.

With £180,00 savings, presumably your MIL is self-funding?

Respectfully, if MIL lives for 3 or more years, there will not be any inheritance to worry about (bar the £14,250 she will be permitted to retain).

Thank you for the replies.

I understand the tone of many of the replies.

However , if you were in my position I doubt many of you would be eager to give the council all of the money!

You don't want the council to get the money to pay for your wife care but are happy for them to fund it, what am I reading??

If she is going to receive that inheritance then yes, it should be used to pay for her care. Trying to divert it elsewhere is deliberate deprivation and fraud on the taxpayer. Suck it up.

I've rewritten your question for you. "How can I get Council Tax payers in Essex to pay for my wife's care so I can trouser £180k of unearned money."

That's how life works. You either fund your MIL care or thr state fund it and you give up the pension.

You can't have it both ways.

So do you think the money should go to people who can afford to pay? What about those who actually can't? Then there's less to look after those people.