Harassment from care home manageress

A fair few Care Homes are closing because the owners are not making the immense profits they did in the early days. There are many expensive safety regulations that have to be met, and staff costs are rising; everyone thinks care workers should be paid more and this is one of the places it applies.

She’s not harassing you she needs to have the money that’s owed for the care he’s receiving . I’m afraid it’s a fact of life . It’s very expensive and we went through the same thing one of my close family was paying thousands per month .

A POA can only be granted if thee is full mental capacity.

Take out a power of Attorney; a solicitor will come to the Care Home, as happened with my father. Of course she is harassing you; she has costs to meet.

A very good informative post Luckygirl3.

You need proper advice so that your OH can meet his debt to the care home - although I suspect it is a nursing home in fact. The home has to meet all its bills so they are entitled to their fee. It is not harassment. I am surprised that they have not advised you on how to sort this problem.

First and foremost you need to consider whether the CHC funding was withdrawn fairly - contact Beacon www.beaconchc.co.uk to discuss whether an appeal can be lodged - I did this for my OH and won.

But in any event you must go to adult social care in the local authority and get help from them. They will assess your OH's means - NOT yours - and work out how best to help him.

Your home is safe, all savings in your name are safe, all income that is yours alone is safe. They will look at HIS income and savings only, and he will be assessed to pay an amount with a small personal allowance left to him.

The only problem left is that it is very likely that the LA will have a ceiling beyond which they do not pay - so there might be a top-up needed and you will need to discuss this with them. You are NOT obliged to pay this yourself.

Even without CHC funding there is something called NHS-funded nursing care. This allowance reimburses nursing homes for the care they provide to patients. The rate for the standard rate in England is £235.88 per week.

You do need proper advice about all of this, so please do not bury your head in the sand and watch the bills mount up. If you need a hand hold during the process then Age UK are good. They have an advice line: 0800 678 1602. They will provide guidance and also probably put you in touch with your local branch.

You must grasp this problem - the longer it drifts on the more difficult things will become. The home needs to be paid - they cannot function if they do not have an income.

It’s supposed to be a CARE home !

Unfortunately care homes have to be paid for and she is probably desperate now.
If everyone defaulted on their payments the home would have to close.

You need help urgently; if your DH has a separate bank account and savings you need legal advice and advice from the Social Worker on how to access this money so you can pay the fees.

Good luck.

I do sometimes wonder how the costs break down for some care homes and how much profit shareholders, venture capitalists make out of what is big business now.

Firstly you need to apply to the Office of the Public Guardian to get POA.
You need to contact adult services to get a deferred payment in place.
You then need to arrange a meeting with the manageress.
Do not bury your head in the sand, things will get worse if you do.

They can’t make you sell your home as you still live there.

Sorry, 4 weeks.

It sounds like you are 4 months behind with paying.

As well as the posts above, do you have any family or friends to help you navigate things?
It sounds like you got into a mess.

Good advice from everyone.

The manageress will be under great pressure from the owners, it is not her fault that you owe the money.

You really need to speak to social services ASAP, if you haven't already done so.

Good advice there from Dilemma and Casdon, but whatever you do, please don't just ignore the situation. I understand how difficult this situation is, as we've been through it ourselves with my inlaws, but these care homes are a business like any other, and the manageress is probably following procedures from higher up re the invoices. Get advice and seek help now, before the situation snowballs even further.

It’s not actually harassment Notjustaprettyface, the care home has to be paid, and we know from your previous posts that you’re already aware that this was going to happen. You’re the next of kin, so you must take action, regardless of not having power of attorney, or they will take legal action to recover the money owed. The Local Authority Social Work team who were dealing with you previously will be able to advise you what to do, but please act quickly, because you will cause yourself more problems otherwise.

Contact Adult Social Care to ask for a financial assessment for your husband (NOT you). This form will probably ask about your income/savings/investments but you do not need to divulge this information.
ASC can take all your husband’s state pension and half of his private pensions, less a personal weekly allowance (around £30 I think).
Meanwhile, return all invoices with a covering letter saying you are awaiting a financial assessment from ASC.
No relative is required to pay for another’s care.
Then chocolate and a large glass of wine for you!

Age Concern might be able to help you with information on how to access your husbands bank accounts to pay the fees?

Usually when the money runs out you have to make other arrangements to move into a care home funded by the Local Authority.

Or sell your property to fund the home you are using.

I’m sorry this has happened to you and your DH.