Financial advice for Elderly parents?

[redpickle]

We're trying to support IL's after FIL's recent Parkinson's diagnosis. MIL really needs some advice on what best to do with savings/home etc in case FIL needs to go into a care home. Also, she has been told she may be entitled to carers allowance but not really sure what that means or how it may impact their finances.
Can anyone point me in the direction of this kind of advice? Thank you!

First things first. Have you got POA (both financial and health) sorted out?

The charity Parkinson's UK would be a good place to start www.parkinsons.org.uk

They have a helpline 0808 800 0303

Definitely get POA if you dont have already but be prepared for a long wait to approve (and as far as I am aware there is no fast track!).

Or when I needed something urgently for DF I went to a solicitors and he gave me a 1 pager whilst the LPOA went through. Most useful it was too.

Age UK should be able to help.

Regarding finances, is their house owned as joint tenants or tenants in common? If joint, then it cannot be used to pay for care home fees whilst both people are still alive and living there.
If they have any savings, any in his sole name can be used over the threshold of £14250.

Here’s the link for carers allowance, and also for attendance allowance. Neither of them are affected by other income.
www.gov.uk/carers-allowance
www.gov.uk/attendance-allowance

I thought carers allowance can affect or be affected by income (inc pension) /other benefits, definitely get advice from age uk or similar.

that's right.
you can register as a carer with DWP, if the person whom you care for gets higher rate AA.
but you will not receive the carer's money, £70 a week, if you earn more that £115 a week or are in receipt of state pension.

Another one to say get the LPOA asap!

The Gov.uk pages are very good for each type of allowance.

www.gov.uk/carers-allowance/eligibility

Carers Allowance is not available, for example, if you receive full state pension.

If only recently diagnosed it may be that FIL is currently very able, but have a look at Attendance Allowance, which is non means tested and can help with a range of assistance.

This is quite a good summary of how care costs work

www.nhs.uk/conditions/social-care-and-support-guide/money-work-and-benefits/when-the-council-might-pay-for-your-care/

and if you are above the savings threshold:

www.nhs.uk/conditions/social-care-and-support-guide/money-work-and-benefits/paying-for-your-own-care-self-funding/

Age UK also have very good information on their website.

First things first.

Are you absolutely sure that you have drummed it into them that they must not trust the nice person who telephones to tell them that there is a problem with their computer, or the nice person who knocks on the door about their roof, or the legitimate-looking email purporting to be from their bank or pension provider?

Please, please tell them over and over again.

Please also keep on at them to put the chain on the door, and never let any salesperson or unexpected caller into their home.

Everyone gets carers allowance regardless of income/savings etc. it’s a couple of hundred a week towards care homes fees paid by the local authority. Phone social work and ask for a financial assessment then they will pay direct to care home. It will get back dated if there is a delay which there usually is

that is not correct

That's isn't carers allowance. I get carers allowance and it's based on your max income as someone else has said upthread

Assuming your in laws agree, once you get the financial POA get you DH to register it with the bank. I'm signed up with my Mums bank account and have my own card and access to her online banking. It makes everything so easy. The bank ( hsbc) were very helpful.

You are thinking of Attendance Allowance. If a person is self-funding for their care home, they can still be paid Attendance allowance. If local authority is paying then they won't get any Attendance allowance payment. Carers allowance is nan overlapping benefit with state pension so if the carer receives state pension which is more than £69.70 per week, they will not be paid carers allowance. However, they can still apply and be awarded an underlying entitlement to carers allowance which can gain them a carers premium on means tested benefits like pension credit and council tax support.

Carers Allowance is not available, for example, if you receive full state pension. Strictly, you can’t be paid both carers allowance and another benefit. Since it’s less than State Pension, you’d be a fool to choose carer’s allowance over state pension.

Or so I read when I was looking into finances but that was a few years ago.

All the divergent understandings on this thread show how important it is to double check everything. Best treat advice here as questions to be asked.

OP, by “savings” are you talking about a few hundred in a building society or 000’s n various investments? If the latter, a financial adviser with an interest in older people and an ethos not focussed on tax avoidance would be useful. Ask around friends for recommendations.

As others have said that's not carers allowance, it's the local authority contribution towards care costs which will vary according to the clients means and whether there is any NHS contribution.

www.gov.uk/carers-allowance/eligibility

Pp's have already suggested good charities and apologies if I've missed it but you can also ask CAB, your local authorities welfare rights team. If services are being arranged by Local Authority and a financial assessment being completed then it's good practice for them to advise the client how to maximise benefit income (its in their interests). It might be worth getting independent financial advice. As pp's have said finance and health and welfare LPA's for both.

Thank you so much for all the advice. DH is going to speak to Age Concern as a priority. I guess it's made complicated for a reason! I'm just worried that my lovely MIL has both her boys trying to offer advice but really, we don't know. I'd rather find out and then present a plan to her so she's not more stressed than she already is. And yes, we do have LPOA for both of them.