Page 2 - Guide To Planning for Care Costs

INFORMATION SHEET FOR CLIENTS ABOUT CARECOSTS

We are all living longer which is great. However many of us in our latter years will be managing illness or frailties
and will need care – either in our own homes or in a residential care home. Care can be expensive and how to
pay it is a worry for many people. Others worry about losing assets they may have built up in their lifetime.
Whether highly motivated about potential care or not – thinking and planning ahead around this issue is just
commonsense.

CARE COSTS

If you go into a nursing home, you will be assessed to establish whether you are able to pay your own care
costs or whether care will be provided to you without payment. Care costs are substantial. Consequently any
reliance on care for a long period will be very significant financially. The value of your house will be included
(except in certain limited circumstances such as the house still being occupied by your spouse or an elderly
relative). The local authority financial assessment form will ask whether you have made any gifts within the
past 6 months and whether you have disposed of the house you were formerly living in prior to entering the
nursing home even if that disposal was many
years ago.

CAPITAL AND THE VALUE OF YOUR HOME (INFORMATION
PROVIDED BY DWP.)

If you own your home then it will usually be counted as capital 12 weeks after you move permanently into a
care home. The value of your home will not be counted as capital if certain close relatives still live there.

If you own capital (including your home unless exempted as above) over the limit set from time to time by
the Scottish Government you will have to pay the accommodation costs relative to your care.

The capital limits can be found here

http://www.careinfoscotland.co.uk/topics/care-homes/paying-care-home-fees/capital-limits/

From these limits you can see in practical terms that any householder will have to pay for their own
accommodation care costs.

If you are assessed as needing nursing home or residential care, you will be asked to claim any Income
Support benefits or Pension credit you may be entitled to and these will be taken into account in a means
test to ascertain how much you can afford to pay. Normally you will have to pay all your income towards the
fees, less a small amount per week you can retain for personal expenses. You will receive your free personal
care and nursing care allowances as appropriate to set against any fees you may have to pay.

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