Disabled Facilities Grant, whose financial status would be used in assessment?

Wibbles
Wibbles Community member Posts: 2,209 Championing
edited February 2023 in Housing and independent living
We own our own home and it looks likely that my father in law will be moving in with us... He wife recently passed away. 
He has unknown savings and won't reveal the amount to anyone 
We need major work to make the house suitable for him such as a downstairs toilet and a shower in the bathroom (he is virtually immobile and could not use the bath) & a stairlift 

Would our financial status be used in any assessment or would it be his?

I too have similar needs but due to savings would receive no financial help. 

Comments

  • Cher_Alumni
    Cher_Alumni Scope alumni Posts: 5,714 Championing
    edited February 2023
    Hi @Wibbles

    I've renamed your thread to help others find it more easily, and wanted to draw your attention to Shelter's advice around Disabled Facilities Grants, particularly:
    The means test is applied to the relevant person, who is the disabled occupant or one of the disabled occupants of the dwelling, or the partner of the disabled occupant or one of the disabled occupants of the dwelling.[22]
    I'd definitely read the advice page as a whole though to be more fully informed. I hope that helps and wish you and your family all the best in event your father in law moves in with you.
  • Wibbles
    Wibbles Community member Posts: 2,209 Championing
    edited February 2023
    Cher_Scope said:
    Hi @Wibbles

    I've renamed your thread to help others find it more easily, and wanted to draw your attention to Shelter's advice around Disabled Facilities Grants, particularly:
    The means test is applied to the relevant person, who is the disabled occupant or one of the disabled occupants of the dwelling, or the partner of the disabled occupant or one of the disabled occupants of the dwelling.[22]
    I'd definitely read the advice page as a whole though to be more fully informed. I hope that helps and wish you and your family all the best in event your father in law moves in with you.

    I am even more confused now :
    We are both disabled (my FIL and myself) - I have capital/savings that preclude any financial assistance but my FIL may be entitled to assistance
    Anyone receiving pension credit has their capital/savings ingored and my FIL's income will be small.
    I dont believe that my FIL is claiming Pension Credit (although he should be entitled to) ....... he doesn't claim "benefits" !
    I don't want to ask my local authority for advice until I know how we stand legally and in any case - my FIL may not be moving in yet !
    How do I get the rules on who is assessed ?
    "The means test is applied to the relevant person, who is the disabled occupant or one of the disabled occupants of the dwelling" - but that covers both of us
    it does say "A disabled occupant is any person with a disability (see below), for whose benefit it is proposed to carry out any of the relevant works."
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 61,372 Championing
    It will be based on your FIL income and savings. You've already said yourself that you won't be entitled to it based on your circumstances because you have too much savings.


  • Wibbles
    Wibbles Community member Posts: 2,209 Championing
    poppy123456 said:
    It will be based on your FIL income and savings. You've already said yourself that you won't be entitled to it based on your circumstances because you have too much savings.



    Thats brilliant - thanks
    What would happen - should the worst happen and he only survives for a few years - would we then be billed ?
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 61,372 Championing
    Once he moves in with you then he will need to refer himself for a needs assessment first. From there it will determine whether they can provide any help and what help is available.

    If work needs to be done to the house then he will need a financial assessment and he would need to declare all of his income and savings. All of this could take in excess of a year. 

    It’s unlikely that you would need to pay anything back if he passes away within a certain time. 


  • Wibbles
    Wibbles Community member Posts: 2,209 Championing
    edited February 2023
    poppy123456 said:
    Once he moves in with you then he will need to refer himself for a needs assessment first. From there it will determine whether they can provide any help and what help is available.

    If work needs to be done to the house then he will need a financial assessment and he would need to declare all of his income and savings. All of this could take in excess of a year. 

    It’s unlikely that you would need to pay anything back if he passes away within a certain time. 



    He will never refer HIMSELF - We will need to do it for him.
    I don't think that finding out his financial status is going to be easy either
    I am concerned that the whole process will take way too long - I mean, if he were to move in with us next month - he will need a downstairs toilet and stairlift straight away - not in 12 months time !
    What do we do in the meantime ?
    He can't be confined upstairs in his bedroom
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 61,372 Championing
    If you don't have any idea of his savings amount then how do you know he will qualify for financial support? If he's wanting financial help then he will have no option but to declare all of his savings and income.

    If you think that this will be sorted over night then you're very much mistaken because it's never that easy. I'm sure a lot of us think it should be but sadly not.

    For the stair lift if it's that urgent then can he buy one himself and have it fitted? If you have a stair lift would a downstairs toilet still be needed? Your LA may refuse this if he has a stair lift.
  • Wibbles
    Wibbles Community member Posts: 2,209 Championing
    poppy123456 said:
    If you don't have any idea of his savings amount then how do you know he will qualify for financial support? If he's wanting financial help then he will have no option but to declare all of his savings and income.

    If you think that this will be sorted over night then you're very much mistaken because it's never that easy. I'm sure a lot of us think it should be but sadly not.

    For the stair lift if it's that urgent then can he buy one himself and have it fitted? If you have a stair lift would a downstairs toilet still be needed? Your LA may refuse this if he has a stair lift.
    He needs to be able to get up and down the stairs doesn't he?
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 61,372 Championing
    Wibbles said:
    poppy123456 said:
    If you don't have any idea of his savings amount then how do you know he will qualify for financial support? If he's wanting financial help then he will have no option but to declare all of his savings and income.

    If you think that this will be sorted over night then you're very much mistaken because it's never that easy. I'm sure a lot of us think it should be but sadly not.

    For the stair lift if it's that urgent then can he buy one himself and have it fitted? If you have a stair lift would a downstairs toilet still be needed? Your LA may refuse this if he has a stair lift.
    He needs to be able to get up and down the stairs doesn't he?

    Yes that's why i mentioned the stair lift but as i advised if he has a stair lift then the down stairs toilet may not be needed because the stair lift will mean he can go upstairs to use the toilet. There won't be a quick solution to any of this because there will be waiting times for each stage.
  • Wibbles
    Wibbles Community member Posts: 2,209 Championing
    poppy123456 said:
    Wibbles said:
    poppy123456 said:
    If you don't have any idea of his savings amount then how do you know he will qualify for financial support? If he's wanting financial help then he will have no option but to declare all of his savings and income.

    If you think that this will be sorted over night then you're very much mistaken because it's never that easy. I'm sure a lot of us think it should be but sadly not.

    For the stair lift if it's that urgent then can he buy one himself and have it fitted? If you have a stair lift would a downstairs toilet still be needed? Your LA may refuse this if he has a stair lift.
    He needs to be able to get up and down the stairs doesn't he?

    Yes that's why i mentioned the stair lift but as i advised if he has a stair lift then the down stairs toilet may not be needed because the stair lift will mean he can go upstairs to use the toilet. There won't be a quick solution to any of this because there will be waiting times for each stage.
    So to get a stair lift would be shooting ourselves in the foot
    A stupid situation 
  • janer1967
    janer1967 Community member Posts: 21,922 Championing
    Thr point poppy is making is why would you need the toilet downstairs if there was a stair lift to get upstairs 

    Yes it may mean you then don't get the toilet but that is a solution and not shooting yourself in the foot 

    You have mentioned these adaptions many times for your needs are they for you or for your father to be able to move in with you.

    The starlift would just be a quicker solution if there is an urgent need and could be funded by both parties 

    I know it's the option I would go for rather than having a commode or similar downstairs 
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 61,372 Championing
    Wibbles said:
    poppy123456 said:
    Wibbles said:
    poppy123456 said:
    If you don't have any idea of his savings amount then how do you know he will qualify for financial support? If he's wanting financial help then he will have no option but to declare all of his savings and income.

    If you think that this will be sorted over night then you're very much mistaken because it's never that easy. I'm sure a lot of us think it should be but sadly not.

    For the stair lift if it's that urgent then can he buy one himself and have it fitted? If you have a stair lift would a downstairs toilet still be needed? Your LA may refuse this if he has a stair lift.
    He needs to be able to get up and down the stairs doesn't he?

    Yes that's why i mentioned the stair lift but as i advised if he has a stair lift then the down stairs toilet may not be needed because the stair lift will mean he can go upstairs to use the toilet. There won't be a quick solution to any of this because there will be waiting times for each stage.
    So to get a stair lift would be shooting ourselves in the foot
    A stupid situation 

    It's an answer to your problems and not shooting yourselves in the foot. If your father is law is really moving in with you then why can't you split the cost in two for the stairlift?

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