We received a call from a lady in her 70s who had discovered her husband had been receiving letters from HM Revenue & Customs for some time but he had not been opening them. He had been a Chartered Accountant in his working life, but he was now suffering the early signs of dementia and was no longer able to manage their financial affairs easily. His wife had never had to deal with the family’s finances and was living in a state of high anxiety about the mounting paperwork.
An elderly couple were referred to us by their son. They lived in a large and potentially valuable house. Like many in later life, they were ‘asset rich and cash poor’ and finding it increasingly difficult to get by. The house was in need of some repairs and they were also in need of home help, but were unlikely to have this funded by the local authority. They were adamant that they did not wish to move from the property and none of their family were able to support them financially.
We were approached by the family of an elderly, widowed lady who had moved into a residential home 3 years previously after developing various care needs. She was bed bound, doubly incontinent and unable to feed herself. At the time, she had been informed by the local authority and primary care trust that, while she qualified for a Registered Nursing Care Contribution of £108.70 per week towards her care fees, she was liable for all other costs – which amounted to over £3,000 a month.
