It is a government benefit that helps with extra costs if you are over state pension age and need someone to help look after you.
It might be that you feel you don’t need financial support now, but it is a non-means tested benefit, and it might be something that you could be very pleased you have in the future if you need to pay for carers or a stair-lift, for example. Or it could be something you could use now to pay for taxis if you can no longer drive or get public transport, or if you need help with cleaning or meal preparation.
Most importantly, Attendance Allowance helps you remain independent for as long as possible. Our friends at Grey Matters Consultancy are experts in claiming this. Why not head over to their website and find out more, or we can put you in touch with them.
Most tradespeople are honest and trustworthy but it doesn’t matter what our age, we’ve all had a tradesperson who didn’t care, or who was in a rush to do some work for us. And I bet we didn’t follow them up on each of those visits. Imagine then if we ended up with someone who was a bit of a wrong ‘un! How would we deal with that? And how would you deal with that if you were older?
So if you have an older neighbour, look out for them. They may be living with dripping taps, dodgy electrics, holes in the roof, or clogged gutters to name a few, because they are worried about being in their home on their own with a tradesperson or don’t know who to call to get something done.
Some charities like Age UK offer a handyman service, so they are a good place to start to find someone reliable and trustworthy; but for bigger jobs, we all need to look out for our older folk and be sure we are sharing good contacts and helping them feel safe when getting work done.
If you need help in identifying decent quality and reliable tradespeople, please ask us for a copy of our Silver Pages.
Many things I’ve read and heard recently herald the importance of having a community around you as you get older. Those living in isolation tend to live shorter, less happy lives. A community can be friends and neighbours or people you see all the time. Here are some examples of community or places where you can find communities in your local area:
Do you need to choose a mobile for yourself as an older person or for an older loved one? Here are our top tips:
Is this the first time you’ve had a mobile phone? If so, consider a phone with just a few apps so it is not overwhelming. Doro https://www.doro.com/en-gb make phones specifically for seniors and we’ve helped a number of clients get these phones.
Don’t like the idea of a Doro phone? Who is the person that will help you get to grips with a mobile? Get a phone similar to theirs. So if your son / daughter or grandchild has an iPhone, get one of those, or if they have a Samsung, get one of those. They will much more likely be able to help you as they know what you’re asking about.
Do you have a hearing aid that should be smartphone compatible? Check with your audiologist if the phone you want will be compatible.
Consider getting a second hand phone on a monthly sim contract to start with in case it isn’t used much. You can always get a more fancy phone later on.
Once you have your new phone we can help you set it up and give you some regular lessons in how to use it. We suggest getting to grips with one function at a time. And remember, once you have one, carry it everywhere and make sure it’s always charged. No point in having one that is at home if you have a fall in the street!
Is your admin out of control? Do you have papers everywhere? Do you miss appointments regularly or miss deadlines? Here are some of our top tips to get back on track, whatever your age.
Write it down. If you use paper and pen, great, but have it in one place. If you are embracing digital technology then here are some places to keep track of to do lists:a. Evernote https://evernote.com/b. Todoist https://app.todoist.com/app/c. Notes app on your phone
Put things straight in your diary when you get an invitation or an appointment letter. And if you need to do a task at some point in the future, diarise a time to do it (you can do this instead of writing it on a to do list)
Check your emails and WhatsApps at the end of the day to make sure you haven’t missed anything (we’re guilty of reading but not actioning immediately).
Use your smart speaker to remind you of things and add items to your shopping list (or other lists you create). You can review these online or through your smartphone app or get the speaker to talk to you!
We’re happy to discuss how to make these work for you practically.
The inevitable will happen to all of us and it’s good to get planning and talking about it before we go. The inevitable might be that your attorneys need to act for you or help you during your lifetime or it might be information for your executors when you die. There are some great resources available and we wanted to let you know of the ones we like:
For attorneys and executors
Peace of Mind Planner – a comprehensive workbook to fill in containing details that anyone dealing with your estate would like to know about https://amzn.eu/d/8NaEsOY
If you are a client of St James’s Place Partnership they also have a similar manual which you can fill in.
For executors and useful in advance to start planning
White Balloon https://www.whiteballoon.co.uk/ a resource for life’s end from funeral directors to florists, counsellors and musicians and much more.
Using the information from the life manuals above, you can close, freeze or transfer all of your loved one’s accounts from one place, for free. You can also set it up in advance. https://lifeledger.com/
Planning doesn’t have to be sad or morbid, it ensures that you make life easier for your loved ones and that your wishes are respected when you are gone.
So, you’ve decided that the best thing for your loved one (or you) is to get some help with care at home. It could be help with meals, or with personal care, cleaning or companionship, or a mixture of all of these things. If you have more than £23,250 in savings you have to pay for the care yourself.*
We’ve noticed that lots of people seem to think that those providing care at home are expensive, intimating that the extra costs involved rather than privately paying a carer, aren’t worth the money. Here are some things we think are worth thinking about when considering the options:
Employing someone privately means you are responsible for sick pay, holiday pay and finding cover when they’re not there, as well as finding the right person in the first place through adverts and interviews, and then getting employment contracts set up. You might need to find cover at short notice when it isn’t practical to do so. The carer should also set up a care plan for your loved one (or you) but the practicalities of the time they have might mean this falls by the wayside. In short, you might be lucky, but the legal, financial and practical responsibilities can be onerous.
Using a care agency means that you have a management point of contact to sort all sorts of queries and concerns that you may have. They are responsible for training staff and ensuring all legal protocols are covered for compliance and best practice. They will make sure a care plan is in place and regularly reviewed. They also have insurance and will provide any cover for holidays and sickness and ensure their carers are paid. They can inform you of changes to legalities relevant to your situation. They also often put on seminars for family members, such as dementia awareness sessions and other relevant information.
If you are not sure if care at home is the right thing for you, then we can put you in touch with https://eldercareconsultant.co.uk/. We can also help you with agency recommendations in your area.
Do you find you get post that you don’t deal with? It is very boring after all! You do need to open it so it doesn’t get lost, but you don’t need to deal with it straight away. Here’s our video from last year and three top tips:
Open envelopes on the day you get the post
Flatten the post and throw the envelope away
Either deal with it or file it there and then or put the contents in a magazine file to file or deal with later.
For more information on how and why we recommend the above, have a look at our video here:
HMRC should send you a PAYE coding notice each year, unless they believe that a source of PAYE income is not chargeable to tax, or if you do not have a liability to tax on any PAYE-source income. Being retired doesn’t stop you from being liable for tax or from receiving a tax code.
If you usually get one and don’t have one yet this year then you should get in touch with HMRC to find out what happened to it.
If you usually get a tax code notice you should check it when you receive it to make sure it is correct! If you need help in understanding it this is a great link to help you and a great website in general for help regarding tax issues for older people. https://taxvol.org.uk/index.php/your-tax-code-notice-pensions/
We can recommend accountants and tax specialists to help you with your tax affairs if you have questions or need a tax return done on your behalf.
