3rd party on mums bank account

tracyroll23

hi, I’m named as a 3rd party on my mums bank account as I was caring for her and helping her manage her / bills etc. Now I am migrating to UC will they class the money in the account as half mine? If so I will have to remove my name, and I’m not sure how she will manage 😕 thanks

poppy123456

If you are named on the bank account as a third person and she has any savings in that account the a third of it will belong to you.

If that takes your total capital/savings to more than £6,000 there will be a deduction in your UC. If it takes it to more than £16,000 then there will be no entitlement to any means tested benefits.

If you’re migrating to UC as part of managed migration and are moving from Tax credits then savings or more than £16,000 are disregarded for 1 year. You will need to report any capital/savings you have when you claim.

tracyroll23

it will take my bank account over £6000, although none of that money is mine, it’s just where my mums pension goes, and her bills come out. No tax credits, so that doesn’t apply to us. I will just have to remove my name and maybe the home my mum is in can help her, as she now has dementia 😕 thanks for your help anyway, much appreciated

poppy123456

The issue here is that it’s in your name so even though it’s not technically yours, it’s your mums but for benefits purposes a share of it is yours. Removing your name from the bank account could causes issues in itself because if they find out they will ask questions.

tracyroll23

oh blimey 🙁 can’t win really….I’ll explain the situation to them and see what they say 🤷‍♀️

jamiebear

can’t you remove your name but be an appointee for your mum?

Then the money goes into her account but you deal with it?

Also have you looked into power of attorney or putting things into a trust?

tracyroll23

I’m going to the bank today to explain the situation and hope they can help. Do you know how I can become an appointee? Unfortunately she developed dementia very quickly and the GP deemed she didn’t have mental capacity, and I was unable to apply for power of attorney

poppy123456

There’s information here on how to become an appointee. https://www.gov.uk/become-appointee-for-someone-claiming-benefits

tracyroll23

thanks again for replies everyone 😊 as an appointee, will that be taken into account for the £6000?

Adrian_Scope

@tracyroll23 I know you are named on the account but is any of the money in it yours, for example have you ever paid into the account yourself or had benefits or anything in your name paid into the account?

I'm wondering if you would be considered the legal owner but not the beneficial owner if you can evidence the money isn't actually yours.

It's quite complex and I'd advise getting some professional advice but have a look at the Universal Credit ADM, particularly H1097 and the example of Pradeep (I've copied part of it below).

"Pradeep has a building society account. It is in her name so she is the legal owner of the money in that account. However, she says that the money in the account belongs to her sister Leena who is working abroad. On the day the account was opened £20,000 was put into it. Nothing has been paid into the account except interest and no money has been taken out. The DM has evidence from Leena that shegave £20,000 to Pradeep to save for her whilst she was working abroad and she wants it, and the interest, back when she returns. The DM decides that Pradeep is not the benefcial owner of the money in the building society account because she is holding it on trust for Leena."

Further on it also says:

"Person not appointed or authorized

A person who has not been

1. appointed or

2. authorized

who is holding capital of a mentally sick or disabled person is holding it on trust."

tracyroll23

thank you Adrian_scope, I will have a proper read of this 👍

tracyroll23

so, none of the money in the account is mine, and I’ve never had any of my money paid into it, it’s only my mums state pension and othe benefits that went into it. My sister and myself paid my mums shopping and bills etc out of it. Since she’s had a stroke, ( along with the dementia) she is now in a nursing home, and the benefits have now stopped, and she only gets to keep a small amount of her state pension, so the money will soon go down. We still need to pay final rent on the social housing property she lived in previously, and haven’t paid any of the care home bills yet, ( still waiting for invoices) I imagine after all of that there will be about £15,000 left. If half of that would be considered mine, obviously I would still be over the £6000. I will see if I can get any advice from CAB,although I know they are extremely busy!

Adrian_Scope

Welfare Rights might be better suited for the detail of this query @tracyroll23 you can see if there is one in your area on Advicelocal.