A VICTORY FOR COMMON SENSE
Family denied council house after blowing £250,000 inheritance on cars, motorbikes and a tummy tuck
A fAmily have been turned down for a council house after blowing a £250,000 inheritance by splurging on cars, motorbikes and weight-loss surgery.
Keith and Tania Caradeuc’s request was rejected after officials examined their financial records and discovered the scale of their reckless spending.
mr Caradeuc, 53, inherited the money from his late father’s estate. He moved to a nicer rented house, bought a string of vehicles and spent nearly £30,000 on weight-loss surgery for his wife, 42.
A year on from the sale of mr Caradeuc’s father’s home, the couple – who have two young daughters – say they have no money left to pay their rent and could be homeless at the end of the month. But last week officials turned down their application for a council house – which includes supplying bank statements – due to ‘depletion of capital’.
former Sports Direct worker mrs Caradeuc, from St Peter Port, Guernsey, said: ‘i’m just very upset about it, with us being a local family. in hindsight the money should have lasted longer.
‘i was excited when i found out about [the inheritance] because i came from a not-very-well- off family and i’ve never seen money like that in my life, it was very overwhelming for both of us.
‘But it’s ruined everything, in a way it was the worst thing that could have happened.’
former delivery driver mr Caradeuc and his brother sold their father’s house in June 2017 and shared approximately
‘Didn’t expect it to run out so quickly’
£420,000 from the sale. This topped up their inheritance – which they received in 2015 – to around £500,000.
The family moved from their council house in St Jacques to a nicer property, for which they paid a year’s rent, and went on a spending spree. This included three cars – one of which has since been sold – as well as several motorbikes. mrs Caredeuc also underwent several weight-loss operations.
Her surgery, which mostly took place in 2015, included a gastric sleeve, ‘tummy tuck’ and loose skin removal. The final operation on her arms late last year bought the total cost to around £29,000.
‘it was Keith’s idea,’ she said. ‘i lost ten stone, it was for medical reasons, my doctor said i have added years to my life.
‘Some people have acted negatively about that, they have said it was the easy way out, but it hasn’t been easy.’
The couple’s lavish spending ended abruptly in march this year, just nine months after the house sale, when they realised they had spent around £250,000. The couple, who do not work, receive disability benefit and a carer’s allowance for one of their daughters, who has a rare chromosome deficiency condition.
They say they do not have enough income to pay the rent at their new home, leading them to apply for a council house in June.
Recalling when they realised the money had run out, mrs Caredeuc said: ‘i said “what do you mean all the money’s gone? it can’t be”.
‘We felt like we had to move from St Jacques when we got the money, and the new house was close to where my daughter goes to school. But we had a nice house in St Jacques, we had friends and we were happy.
‘At first we were excited to move but we didn’t expect it to run out so quickly. i have been in bits, i worry about what we are going to do every day.’
A spokesman from Guernsey’s Office for Employment and Social Security said it did not comment on individual cases, but stressed it was ‘important that the system treats everyone fairly, given the demand for social housing’.They added: ‘When social housing tenants come into substantial sums of money, typically through an inheritance, they are required to vacate their [council] house.
‘We communicate clearly with tenants who leave in such circumstances and inform them of the length of time that they are expected to accommodate themselves. People unable to support themselves ... are encouraged to apply for income support.’