Attendants allowance for my dad?

[FormFiller]

Just looking for some thoughts on the following.

I am thinking of applying for an attendants allowance for my dad.

He is 90, and lives alone in the family home. We have tried to get him to move, but he won't. Up until the last 6 months he has been a really active person.

However, the past 6 months have been very challenging for him. He was told he had cancer of the bladder and had an operation to have cancerous growths removed. It turned out they were not, but it took its toll on him. He didn't sleep for 6 weeks, getting up to go to the bathroom hourly.

Along side this he has been waiting for a knee operation on one leg, and suffering with gout on the other. He couldn't walk.

He is now 2 weeks post knee op and doing OK. He is staying with me for a bit, then will return home when he is back independent again.

I think he would benefit from the AA to pay for help in his home.

What are the chances? What do I need to provide as part of a claim?

Thanks for your help.

Hi I recently applied for this for my husband. Filled in the online form which was quite straightforward I thought. Then I had a telephone call from them which I took (my husband didn’t have to speak to them). I think they contact your GP regarding health issues etc. I then got a letter saying they would pay the allowance. No need to give details of any savings. All in in all it was easy and quick - I was impressed!

If anyone on here is about to apply in Scotland, be aware the system is now very different from what's described here. Firstly, it's called the Pension Age Disability Payment/PADP, not Attendance Allowance, though it's exactly the same thing.

If you call up Social Security Scotland (SSS) to fill in Part 1 (basic info about the applicant, with the date you do this locked in as the date any award is backdated to), you have to fill out Part 2 on paper. You can't switch to an online application. It's a 76 page document, cf 32 pages mentioned by pp.

The only way Part 2 can be done online is with an SSS person coming to the applicant's home. I have POA for the applicant and they refused to come to mine. I discovered all this after the first Part 2 application was lost, either in the post or in the SSS mail room. Make sure you photocopy everything you write, if you're sending in a paper copy! Thankfully my local carers' organisation suggested this and did it for me. I ignored the postage paid envelope second time around and sent it 48hr tracked.

I've had a nightmarish time doing this for a relative with Alzheimers. Her paranoia about what I was going to say led to me phoning in Part 1, so she could hear everything on speakerphone. After the first Part 2 application was lost, there was no point having an SSS person come to her house as she would've denied there was anything wrong with her - despite all the evidence!
The good news is she was finally granted the payment last week, backdated to last autumn.

I applied for and got it for both my elderly parents.
The form is quite long but pretty straightforward tho you’re best to get all the medical info to hand before you start.
The trick is to always describe the worst day whilst strictly telling the truth. You have to give consent for the GP to be contacted. I had to explain this to mum - she had better and worse days.

I think you would get it. His age plus mobility issues. Yes can't see him not getting it.

As your Dad has capacity you can do this.

My advice is answer every question and think about your Dad’s toileting and personal care needs. If he needs any assistance with these then make that absolutely clear.

Yes definitely apply for it, as others have said imagine his worst day and the amount of supervision and prompting he would need to complete his activities of daily living

Apply ASAP!

You can now also complete the form online and send it in electronically.

With your dads age you will have no issue getting it.

You fill it in on the process of how he does these activities. It's not about the illness. It's about how the illness/disability affects him and how he does/doesn't do these things and how he struggles to do them safely/reliable and/or in a reasonable time

It's also a good idea to get a print-out/summary of his medical records from his GP because you can send that off as supporting evidence. Good luck!

There is no mobility aspect of AA so you need to show how your dads mobility issues with his gout and post op surgery impact his need for care. For example does he need help on the stairs, getting in and out of the bath, getting in and out of bed, standing, rising from a chair, using the toilet etc. Is he unsteady or in danger of falling. How do his physical problems affect his mental health? Do they make him feel anxious and yulnerable? Does he need someone with him outside to help him make a journey safely?

When it asks you to describe a day always describe the worst day and do not minimise the help he needs. Many older people tend to think they can "manage" when if fanct they can only do so slowly and painfully. The extra money will help with the cost of things like taxis, and aids he needs, and all the extra expenses that people with disabilities and long term medical conditions incur.

He will get it pdq given his age and condition. I applied for my DM, it was very easy.

Yes, that’s what I did with both of my parents. I filled it in with them, read it all back to them, and both were awarded highest rate AA.

The money went into their bank accounts.

Thx, I’ve filled it in and sent it off.
Here’s hoping.

This hasn't been my experience at all. My 94yr old dad applied and was turned down. He naturally has limited mobility, is pretty frail, increasingly confused and is hard of hearing so he definitely could do with help around the house BUT doesn't need or indeed want personal care, which I understand is the main point of attendance allowance and possibly why he was turned down.

My dad doesn't have or want personal care either (despite needing it!)
Strange why your dad has been turned down. I don't know if it's worth appealing/trying again?

But the form actually asks you how many days a week you have these personal care needs so if you are just describing a worst day surely that isn't going to be accurate. Surely it should be based on how you are on the majority of days? people need to be careful not to give misleading information.

Thank you all for your help.

I filled in the form online, and a couple of days later got a call from the AA dept. who asked a few Q's, and was told on the spot he would get it.

Then, on Wed my dad had already had it deposited in his account. He is getting the full amount. I can't believe how quick it was turned around. They must have had a slow week!

He is so pleased and it makes my life a whole lot easier having to deal with him 250 miles away.

That's such good news!

Excellent news. Dh sent off paper version overvtwo weeks ago and has not yet heard. Website suggests three weeks so he will follow up next week.

I did a renewal form for my elderly relative. He has Alzheimer’s so I did the paper form as his attorney. Sent it back in the prepaid envelope and got proof of postage but did not pay for recorded delivery. Chased it up 3 weeks later and the DWP say they haven’t got the form. I very nearly cried. Kicking myself for not sending it recorded now.

i really think they need to let Attorneys submit online.

We kept a copy so hopefully we have it covered if that is the response

Why did you apply as attorney? You should have just applied online as a relative.

I’m sure I read in the instructions that if acting in the role of Attorney you have to use the paper form. We were sent the paper form and renewal letter in the post. My relative has Alzheimer’s so there is no way he could participate in the process. My husband did it online for his mum. He has LPA for her but she has not lost mental capacity so all the answers to the questions came direct from her. He just typed them into the online form. I wish I could have just done it online but thought I was following the rules!

Dh chased up with DWP last week after 3 weeks and was told the form had not yet arrived , however today he was advised although it was not “on the system” it might have and he would need to wait up to 12 weeks for a decision. He was also told that poa can apply online now as the system has been updated, despite the .gov page still stating otherwise, so he has resubmitted it and found it much more straightforward as pp described. Fingers crossed.

Suggest applying for a blue badge which he/you can use for parking

It is approx £20