Draft Charging Policy for Social Care Services
In this section
- Managing property and finances
- Advocacy
- Deferred payments
- Invoicing for charges
- Non-payment of charges and debt
- Deprivation of Assets
- Additional costs (AC) for permanent / temporary admissions to a care home
- Additional costs (AC) for respite/short-term admissions to a care home
- Application of the rules to individual cases
- Reviews and methods of appeal
- Appendix 1 - Variations/adjustments to charges for financially assessed services
- Appendix 2 - Operational rules for commencement and termination of packages of care and support
Managing property and finances
20. Managing property and finances
a. Deputyship for property and financial affairs
Carmarthenshire will not normally apply to the Court of Protection to become Deputy for Property and Financial affairs for a person with care and support needs.
Such action will only be taken as a last resort, and only for those persons who are receiving services from Carmarthenshire to meet their care and support needs, and where it is considered in the person’s best interest to do so, e.g. where potential safeguarding matters have been identified.
If Carmarthenshire applies to become Deputy, then it will recover any costs it incurs for its role as deputy, including a flat rate charge for costs incurred up to the point that the Deputyship order is granted. An application to become deputy will only occur where the council believes that there are sufficient funds that require management, and funds available to cover the costs of the deputy’s role.
Additional costs will be incurred if the person has a property which is required to be protected by Carmarthenshire.
b. Appointeeship for Departments for Works and Pensions’ (DWP) benefits
If the person has insufficient funds for a deputyship application, then Carmarthenshire will make an application to the DWP to act as corporate appointee to manage DWP benefits on behalf of a person receiving care and support from/on behalf of Carmarthenshire, where it is in the person’s best interests to do so.
Carmarthenshire will apply a flat rate charge for appointeeships.
A DWP Appointeeship does not give Carmarthenshire authority to act for the person in relation to any other financial affairs, only to deal with their DWP benefits.
c. Protection of Property
Carmarthenshire will not normally protect the property of a person with care and support needs, or a person in hospital.
Such action will only be taken as a last resort, where the person is unable (whether temporarily or permanently) to protect or deal with the property and no other suitable arrangements have been made or are being made to protect that property. Carmarthenshire will protect the property only for those persons who have been admitted into hospital, or into accommodation arranged by Carmarthenshire and where it is considered in the person’s best interest to do so, e.g. where there is a danger of loss or damage to that property.
If Carmarthenshire protects the person’s property, then it will recover any costs it incurs in inspecting/maintaining/clearing the property, along with a flat rate charge for support services in relation to protecting the property, whether the property is owned or rented by the person.
