appointee help

compass

i have noticed the bf57 form the dwp visiting officer gave me at the visit to say i could be appointee for my son as not been stamped with a official stamp .Is this normal or should it be stamped in the top right hand corner All his benefits are paid to me in a bank account in my name

poppy123456

HI,

It should be stamped but it's not a problem not being stamped. You have the form as proof and the benefits are paid to you which means you are the appointee.

compass

I am appointee for my son  His benefits are paid into a bank account in my name only.There is now over £6000 in this account Is this ok for me to stay as appointee or do i need to do something else   please let me know what you guys do  i am so worried

compass

Hi poppy   What if i need to show it to the bank  or somewhere  They wont accept it without the stamp will they

poppy123456

It's not valid for any other purposes except for benefit claims. It will not be accepted by a bank unfortunately.

compass

Sorry to sound stupid but I just dont understand all this benefits and appointee info yet.So the banks wont accept the bf57 form weather its stamped or not.Also as i am appointee is it right that daughters  benefits are paid into bank account that is just in my name only  When the money in this account goes over £6000 do i carry on having her benefits paid into this account as her appointee or is there something else i need to do.How does she access her money if something happens to me   

poppy123456

Being an appointee for your daughter is for benefit purposes only, it doesn't allow you to have control over anything else in her life, including bank accounts.

I'm my daughters appointee too and i receive her PIP money into my bank account so yes that's correct. When i receive it i transfer it across to her bank and then help her control her money through her online banking, I also advise her on what she can or can't buy because she doesn't understand money and she can't even count it.

Your daughters money isn't your money and will not be counted as savings for your benefits, even though it goes into your bank. DWP know it's your bank not your daughters and it will also have her NI number next to the payment when it goes into your bank.

If your daughter doesn't have a bank account in her name then i'd advise you to speak to a bank to open one for her then if anything happens to you she will have access to her own money. Hope this helps.

atlas46

Hi @poppy123456

You learn something every day!

The form BF57 must have an official stamp on the front top of the document.

This form is used as proof of appointee, by a number of utilities e.g. BT.

You have to send them a copy and the appointees name is used for billings.

I never knew that and I was an appointee for someone for over 10 years!!

poppy123456

@atlas46 thanks for that. However, it will not be accepted by a bank unfortunately.

atlas46

Hi @poppy123456

I agree with you about the banks.

But I’ve got another one from my memory bank.

The person I was the appointee for, was assessed has having “severe impairment of intelligence and social function which appears to be permanent and has a certificate from a Medical Practitioner.”

You also needed to be getting middle rate DLA care.

I used that Certificate with the bank a number of times.

That certificate also meant no liability for council tax and other benefits, that I can’t remember.

Hope this is of some use.

poppy123456

Thank for that @atlas46. Thankfully, my daughter still lives with me so doesn't have any bills as such. I'm in the process of waiting for her to have a mental capacity assessment but of course as always there's a waiting list

atlas46

I know exactly what you mean, it’s very frustrating going through the process and you don’t feel in control.

poppy123456

So true that. I feel like bashing my head against a wall sometimes but i fought for 14 years, so another few months isn't going to make any difference to me.

compass

hi poppy123456 how do you go about getting a mental capacity assessment done

poppy123456

My daughter has regular appointments with the learning disabilities team and they are arranging for the assessment to be done.

poppy123456

Hi,

It will depend what money is yours and what money isn't. Would it not be better for you to take your son to open his own bank account? Things could become very complicated in the future if he doesn't have his own bank account.

My daughter is 18 and i'm her appointee but she has her own bank account, which i transfer all her PIP money into once i receive it in my bank.