Long Term Care

At Worldwide, we have specialist independent financial advisers who are qualified to advise you about long term care and happy to answer any questions you have.

This is a specialist qualification and you will be appointed a dedicated personal adviser who will guide you through all the issues you have in relation to long term care.

When it comes to long term care, or any other financial issue, our service to you starts the moment you contact us.

Your initial consultation with your independent adviser is completely free of any charge or obligation.

We also offer you our fee guarantee: There is no charge unless we can help you.

Call your FT award winning independent financial adviser in confidence now on 0800 0112825 or complete the contact form and your dedicated adviser will contact you.

How can we help you?

When you and your adviser have discussed all your long term care financial requirements, your adviser will then research the entire marketplace to seek out the very best solutions for you.

Because your adviser is part of a large team of specialists, with many years experience and knowledge of the financial industry, you have access to the expertise of all our independent financial advisers.

Whilst many solutions appear to involve the selling of financial products to protect against long term care, this is often not required. We will work with your solicitor to ensure your affairs are set up correctly to protect your estate from long term care costs.

So whether the potential solution lies with realigning your property, investments or pensions, with equity release, or any form of finance, we will be able to help you.

What happens if I or someone I know needs long term care?

If you or someone you know needs long term care, there are various procedures to go through. The first step is to request an assessment from your local council to determine your care needs. After this, if it’s decided that you do require care, you will be assessed financially by the local council.

This financial assessment takes into account all your assets, which includes half of any joint assets you may hold such as a joint savings account.

Does the financial assessment decide who has to pay for long term care?

Both your care assessment and your financial assessment decide who is responsible for paying for long term care. There are five possible outcomes to these assessments:

• If you are found to require long term care and the total amount of your assets is below the current threshold (which is an amount that is revised each April) the local council will fund your care costs, minus a contribution from your income. Legally, you must be left with a minimum amount of income each week. This is called your Personal Expenses Allowance and the amount is usually adjusted every April.

• If the total value of your assets is between the minimum and maximum amounts, you will contribute towards your long term care costs from your income and assets, with the local council contributing the rest.

• If it’s decided that you have very complex medical needs, the NHS may fund all your care costs under its continuing NHS health care programme, sometimes known as fully funded care.

• If some of your needs are medical and require care from registered nursing staff, you will receive a contribution to the costs of your nursing care (not your residential care) from your NHS Primary Care Trust.

• If you are voluntarily entering long term care or your total assets are above the maximum threshold for local authority funding, you are required to pay all your fees.

If I have to pay for long term care myself, what options are available?

There are several options available to you when paying for long term care. To start with, there may be sources of funding you are either entitled to or you can apply for. There are benefits you will be entitled to, such as Attendance Allowance, so make sure you claim them all.

Making sure you are claiming all the benefits you are entitled to is particularly important when you undergo your financial assessment, because the local council will assume you are claiming all these benefits and take them into account.

Some people choose to purchase an immediate needs plan; bought, as the name suggests, at the time you need long term care. When you buy this, you exchange a lump sum payment in return for a guaranteed income to help cover your long term care costs. If paid directly to the care provider it is tax free, unlike a conventional annuity.

A few people choose to take out pre-funded long term care insurance, which works in a similar way to other insurance policies – you pay a premium each month for the long term care insurance and it pays out if and when you need long term care.

Other options available to you to help pay for long term care include using savings and investments or using your property (we have more details about this below). Your financial adviser will help you consider all your funding options and assist you in finding the best one for you.

How much does long term care cost?

The cost varies according to how much care you need. Care home costs are based on whether they offer nursing or residential care, their location and the services they provide and are on the increase every year, usually at above the rate of inflation.

Average residential home costs are around £25,000 per year, while nursing home costs are even higher at around £35,000 per year.

If you have any more questions about long term care, contact us at Worldwide to speak to your dedicated and independent financial adviser. We will be happy to help you and initial consultations are free of charge or obligation.

Remember: You won’t pay any fees unless we can help you

Call your FT award winning independent financial adviser in confidence now on 0800 0112825 or complete the contact form and your dedicated adviser will contact you.