What is deliberate deprivation of assets?

Deliberate deprivation is when someone gives away assets — money, property, or possessions — specifically to avoid paying for care. The council can ignore the gift and assess your relative as if they still owned the asset. Timing, intention, and the person's foreseeability of needing care are all relevant. This is a complex area where specialist advice is essential.

Can someone change their will after an Alzheimer's diagnosis?

Yes, provided they have testamentary capacity at the moment the will is made. A solicitor will usually involve a doctor to assess capacity contemporaneously. As dementia progresses, the window for valid changes narrows — acting promptly after diagnosis is critical.

What happens if someone dies without a will while in care?

The intestacy rules apply. The estate is distributed in a fixed legal order — spouse first, then children, then more distant relatives. Unmarried partners and stepchildren receive nothing under intestacy. This is one of the strongest reasons to make a will well before any care need arises.

Is inheritance tax affected by care home fees?

Care home fees reduce the value of an estate, so in principle they reduce inheritance tax. However, paying care fees from income or capital changes the tax position in subtle ways, and gifts of assets in the seven years before death may still be brought back into the IHT calculation. A specialist solicitor or tax adviser is recommended.

Wills and estate planning during the care journey

Arranging care for an elderly relative often raises urgent questions about wills, inheritance, and what happens to the family home. Acting early — before mental capacity becomes an issue — protects your relative's wishes and your family's financial position.

Last reviewed: 23 April 2026·Reviewed by: CareGuide UK Editorial Team, reviewed by an SRA-regulated private client solicitor

Why care and estate planning go hand in hand

A move into care often forces difficult questions to the surface — how will the fees be paid, what happens to the family home, will there be anything left to pass on. The earlier these are thought through, the more options you have. A review of the will, lasting power of attorney, and any property arrangements should sit alongside any care planning conversation.

Is your relative's will up to date?

Wills made decades ago often no longer reflect family circumstances — children have grown up, partners have died, second marriages have happened, executors have moved away. A care diagnosis is a natural prompt to review the will while capacity remains intact.

Inheritance tax and care costs — what families need to know

Care fees reduce the size of an estate and therefore can reduce inheritance tax. But how fees are paid — from income, from capital, from gifts to family — has significant tax consequences. Coordinated advice from a private client solicitor or specialist IFA usually pays for itself many times over.

What happens to the family home when someone goes into care?

Property and the means test

For residential care, the home is included in the means test unless a spouse, partner, or qualifying relative still lives there. For care at home, the home is always disregarded. Read the local authority assessment guide for the full thresholds.

Deferred payment agreements

A council-administered scheme that lets care fees accumulate as a charge against the home, repaid after death. Avoids forced sale during life. Available in most of the UK.

Deliberate deprivation of assets — what it means and what to avoid

Gifting the house to children to avoid means-testing is the classic example. The council can disregard the gift and treat your relative as still owning the property. Acting on this without specialist legal advice is high risk.

Protecting your relative's estate

Legitimate planning options include trusts written into a will, lifetime gifts within HMRC's seven-year rule, equity release, and joint property arrangements. Each has trade-offs that depend on your relative's wider circumstances.

When to update a will or create one for the first time

Anyone over 18 should have a will. The right time to update it is on a major life event — marriage, divorce, the birth of a grandchild, the death of a beneficiary — or a major health event like a dementia diagnosis. Don't wait.

Why timing matters — mental capacity and legal validity

For a will or LPA to be valid, the person must have mental capacity at the moment of signing. Capacity can fluctuate, and an early diagnosis of dementia does not automatically remove it — but the window narrows over time. The same applies to gifts and trust arrangements. Acting promptly protects your relative's wishes from later challenge.

Frequently asked questions

Not directly. The local authority cannot force a sale during your relative's lifetime. However, if they enter residential care and own a home, the council will normally include the home in the means test (with important exceptions for spouses and dependants), and a Deferred Payment Agreement may be used so the home is sold after death rather than during life.