Advisers are taking a proactive approach to care planning as a question mark hangs over government policy, a report from Just Group has shown.
Nearly all advisers said that long term care forms part of their planning conversations with clients, with 71% asking all clients whether they plan to receive care in their home and 27% asking most clients.
Of the 89% of advisers who ask clients if they have preferences about where they would like to receive care, most (81%) will also go on to ask about the suitability or adaptability of their current homes for care in later life.
The research shows that around two thirds (66%) of over-45s don’t want to go into a residential care home, while 65% would be happy for carers to come into their home and just over half (51%) don’t want their children to become their care-givers.
Despite this, more than three quarters (76%) say that they have not thought about care, planned for care or spoken to their family about it.
The research found that those with experience of finding a care home for a loved one with support from an adviser were nearly four times more likely to subsequently make their own care plans than those who had made arrangements without adviser help. Over a quarter (27%) of these respondents said this was prompted by the realisation of how difficult it was to organise care, with 22% saying the experience has also made them realise how expensive it can be.
The findings come as the planned introduction of new care funding rules this autumn has been delayed to after the next General Election.
Stephen Lowe, group communications director at Just Group, said: “Many question whether the reforms will ever see the light of day. Announcing policies that are never delivered has a cost. The litany of abandoned policy announcements leaves people having to sift fact from fiction in an already excruciatingly complex process. It’s no wonder our research shows people are delaying making plans and leaving themselves vulnerable to harm as they are faced with complicated decisions that are often made in a hurry at a point of crisis.
“The only beacon of hope is the work being done by the financial advice community. They are doing a stellar job supporting their clients by encouraging them to explore what they would want if they do need care and working out how this can be funded.”
Lowe said that adviser involvement in care cases not only improves the outcome for the client but galvanises other family members to start preparing for their own potential care needs.
He added: “Improving social care is a difficult problem but should not be insurmountable. At a time when political parties are preparing for the next election, we would urge them to put care policy at the heart of their manifestos and to recognise the positive impact of better information, advice and financial planning on achieving better care outcomes in later life.”
