A few home truths on the cost of care

This week: New speeding penalties

The Fine Bands… If you fall within:

Band A you will face a fine of between 25 per cent and 75 per cent of your weekly income.

Band B you will pay a fine of between 75 per cent and 125 per cent of your weekly income.

Band C you will pay a fine of between 125 per cent and 175 per cent of your weekly income – capped at £1,000 or £2,500, depending on the type of road where the offence took place. Timing… If you were caught speeding before April 24 the old sentencing guidelines will apply, so the new regime outlined above will apply only to those caught speeding after this date. PAYING for residential care is a huge worry for many older people and those with assets can be asked to pay fees.

But I was shocked by a letter from a reader called Louise this week, about her grandad, Bill.

Bill was widowed in 2010 and was left in a house that was too big.

He was in very good health so was nowhere near ready to move into any sort of assisted living.

Instead he decided to sell up and downsize to a rented flat.

Bill ended up with £73,500 spare cash from the sale of the house he shared with his wife.

His granddaughter Louise, then 18, was about to go to Loughborough University, so Bill decided that he would give her £10,000 to help with fees and living expenses.

He also put the same amount in a bank account for his grandson Mark, who was 15 at the time, for his future university study costs.

But six years later, aged 86, Bill’s health had deteriorated greatly.

So in January 2016 the family decided that the time had come for him to go into a care home. The local authority carried out an assessment of Bill’s assets to ascertain how much he should be expected to contribute toward his care.

This was a very quick process as Bill had no assets and no savings.

It was therefore determined that he was entitled to financial support from the council and by the end of February he was settled into a home. But on March 10, Bill received a letter from the local authority saying they had discovered he sold a property in 2010. They asked him to confirm how much he sold it for and what happened to the proceeds.

With the help of his daughter, Bill responded. This is when the saga began, as the council responded by BREAKING the driving speed limits will carry far heavier penalties from tomorrow. Fines will range from between 25 and 175 per cent of your income and bans will be up to 56 days. Here’s what you need to know… Points/ disqualify Disqualify 7 – 56 days OR 6 points Disqualify 7 – 28 days OR 4 – 6 points stating that they believed Bill had given monies to his grandchildren with a view to bringing his assets below the relevant threshold, currently £23,250, to avoid paying all, or part, of his care home fees.

The council demanded he contribute to his care home fees the sum of £20,000, the amount he had given away. Louise, f rom Scunthorpe, tells me the council are now forcing the issue. BILL’S RIGHTS

This is absolute nonsense and the councilc are frankly WRONG.

When they carry out their investigation,i officers must clearly establish that monies have been gifted with the “intention” of a avoiding care fees.

They must also take into account w whether it could have been foreseen that the money might be needed for future care.

They cannot establish this with Bill. I doubt they could establish it many other cases too. It is entirely normal to gift monies to children and grandchildren in your later years.

If you find yourself in this situation you can lodge a complaint with the Local Government Ombudsman. 3 points