Voters reject home sale to fund care
BRITONS understand they need to pay for care needed in old age but they do not think they should have to sacrifice their homes to do so, a study has warned the Government.
More than half say their properties should be excluded from any means testing used to calculate care costs.
And two-thirds agree there should be a cap on the total amount pensioners should have to pay towards their care.
The findings fire a warning shot across the bows of the Government as it battles to reach a consensus on who picks up the bill.
Publication of the long-awaited social care Green Paper has been delayed again and is now due this autumn.
As many as 68 per cent of people questioned by the pension specialist Aegon said costs should be shared between the pensioner and the state.
But there are divisions on how and how much individuals should pay.
Given a choice between tax rises, individuals paying the full cost themselves or government and individuals sharing the cost, the latter option was most popular.
A shared cost system was also the first choice of the younger generation with those aged 18-30 and those aged 51-64 in favour at 74 per cent and 68 per cent respectively.
The Tory manifesto in 2017 sparked a backlash when it suggested individuals might have to pay for care until the value of their assets, including their property, fell to a level of £100,000. The study indicated that including property in assessments still proves as unpopular.
More than half of people are against the idea and a further 20 per cent unsure. The majority were against this across all age groups.
Under the current system, anybody who needs to be cared for in a residential home and who has more than £23,250 in assets to their name is required to fund their own care.
Support for a cap on the total people should have to pay is strong with 64 per cent in favour of an upper limit.
Steven Cameron of Aegon said there is agreement on care need but “detail on how much individuals should pay is fraught with political difficulties”.