My dad with dementia in £12k benefits riddle

Ms A.L. writes: My father had dementia for ten years and was in a care home for the last six or seven years until he passed away last December. The Department for Work & Pensions has written to say that my father’s estate owes about £12,000 in ‘overpaid benefits’, but I believe he only ever received about £6,000 in total for personal items such as toiletries. I tried to make contact, but after six letters and numerous phone calls being transferred from one team to another, I have still had no response.

I ASKED officials at the DWP to look back through their records and see where the payments had gone and why they were not justified. I am afraid the answer is rather sad. One official told me: ‘When Mr N moved into his care home, he was no longer eligible for some aspects of Employment Support Allowance (ESA) and Disability Living Allowance (DLA), given the support being provided by the home. Unfortunately, we were not informed of his move so the payments continued.’

In particular, the ESA payments were actually to cover your father’s mortgage interest as long as he was living in his own property. The DLA payments of more than £4,000 have been written off, and the £6,858 being claimed is money that went towards the mortgage on your father’s home. Another member of your family held a Lasting Power of Attorney, but failed to keep the DWP informed, so payments to the mortgage lender carried on being made.

If you believe you are the victim of financial wrongdoing, write to Tony Hetherington at Financial Mail, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5TS or email tony.hetherington@mailonsunday.co.uk. Because of the high volume of enquiries, personal replies cannot be given. Please send only copies of original documents, which we regret cannot be returned.