Care Fees

If you need long term care in the future, your assets will be assessed to determine whether or not you will be entitled to funded care.

If it is decided you are not eligible, you will have to fund your care- either in part or in full- yourself.

You are deemed to be able to meet the cost of care if you hold over £22,000 (in Wales) or over £23,250 (in England). If you own a property this may or may not be included in the assessment depending on individual circumstances; if you are a sole owner occupier, your property will be taken into consideration.

What if I have placed my assets into Trust?

If you have already transferred assets into a life time trust, such as our Family Home Protection Trust or the Estate Protection Trust, then the value of those assets should not be included in your financial assessment.

With the cost of residential care rising to an average of £45,000 per year (in some parts of the country exceeding £60,000 per year), and with around half of Britain’s 440,000 care home residents funding their own care home fees, it is now more important than ever to plan ahead for the future.

Paying for care fees

The are 3 options for funding:

Continuing care from the NHS dependant on physical or mental health need
You fund your own care
Local Authority funds your care

If your health needs are not assessed as at a level to require NHS funding, then you will be means tested to determine your ability to pay. The local authority will consider both the capital you own and the income you receive to determine if they should fund your care.

What types of capital are means tested?

Examples of the types of capital that can be included are as follows:

The family home
Cash in the bank
Stocks and shares
Land

Some capital may be disregarded permanently or temporarily. Such as:

Investment bonds which are linked to life assurance
Capital held in certain types of trust
Personal possessions

If the financial assessment determines that you have capital over the sum of £23,250 (England) or £22,000 (Wales) then you will be required to meet the full costs of your fees. Once your assets are depleted to this level, the Local Authority will contribute to the costs of your fees.

What income will be considered?

As well as your assets, the local authority will also look at any income you receive, such as:

Most benefits
Trust income
Private/Occupational pension

You’ll be expected to fund £1 of income for each £250 of capital that you hold between £14,250 and £23,250 (England only)

Some income is disregarded temporarily or permanently:

50% of an occupational pension if the resident is paying that to their spouse/civil partner
£10 per week of a war widow’s, war widower’s or war disablement pension
War widow’s special payments