Plan Ahead to Protect Your Assets

Without proper safeguards, your hard-earned assets, like your property, could be entirely lost in value to care home fees, leaving very little behind for your loved ones to inherit.

Gambling with your hard-earned assets

The Risks of Standard “Mirror Wills”

Relying on a basic Will is like gambling with your hard-earned assets

If you’ve made standard Mirror Wills, you may think you’ve taken the right steps to protect your estate. After all, Mirror Wills simply leave everything to your spouse or partner and then to your children after you’re both gone. However, this approach has a hidden risk: it leaves your entire estate exposed to care fees if the surviving spouse requires care.

Paul King TEP, Head of April King Legal, shares his personal experience:
“My grandfather left everything to my grandmother in a Mirror Will...

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When she required care later in life, the entire estate was used to fund care home fees. By the time she passed, there was little left for her children to inherit. If my grandfather had used a property trust Will, he could have safeguarded his half of the home, ensuring part of the estate was preserved for the family.”

This example highlights the importance of proactive planning. With an April Will®, you can take steps to protect your share of the property while still ensuring your spouse is cared for during their lifetime.

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Reality of Means Testing for Care Fees

What you need to know

Under the Community Care Act 1990, local authorities conduct a means test to assess your assets if you require care. This test includes your savings, investments, and property, often leaving families shocked when they realise their home could be sold to fund care home costs or nursing home care costs.

Key facts:

  • Assets Over £23,250: If your assets exceed this amount, you’ll be responsible for funding your care in full.

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  • Property Inclusion: Your home is included in the means test unless certain exceptions apply, such as if a dependent spouse or partner continues to live there.
  • Deprivation of Assets: Local authorities can challenge property transfer to children or into a ‘Living Trust’ if it’s deemed a deliberate attempt to avoid nursing home fees or care home charges.

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Adult Social Care

Myths About Care Fee Planning

There is a lot of misinformation surrounding care fee protection. Let’s debunk some common myths:

Myth 1: “Gifting My House to My Children Will Protect It”

Fact: This is a huge gamble. Gifting your property might seem like a ‘quick fix’, but the local authority can investigate this transfer at any time. If they believe it was done to avoid care fees, they can rule it as a ‘deliberate deprivation of assets’.

Think about it from the council’s perspective: you’ve owned your home for 30 years, and then, just as you approach old age, you suddenly give it away for no genuine reason? It’s a blazing red flag. With council budgets tighter than ever, teams are specifically trained to spot these schemes, and the clampdown is only getting harsher.

There is no time limit on how far back they can look.

Worse, you lose all legal control of your home. If the child you gift it to goes through a divorce or bankruptcy, your home is now their asset, and a stranger could force its sale.

Myth 2: “The Seven-Year Rule Will Protect Me”

Fact: This is a common and dangerous mix-up. The seven-year rule relates only to Inheritance Tax, not care fees.

It has no relevance to a local authority assessment. A council can look back indefinitely (10, 15, 20+ years) to see why you gave the asset away. If they find the main reason was to avoid care costs, they will charge you as if you still owned the property.

Myth 3: “What About Living Trusts?”

Fact: These “Living” or “Lifetime Trusts” are aggressively marketed online, but they all involve one thing: losing ownership and control of your home.

The warnings are not new. Age UK sounded the alarm on these schemes as early as 2013, back when they were typically called ‘Asset Protection Trusts’. The UK’s top legal bodies agree:

  • STEP (the global trust body) confirms trusts set up during your lifetime specifically to avoid care fees will likely fail.
  • The Association of Lifetime Lawyers warns of a "trust mis-selling scandal".

The costs are eye-watering—typically £4,000 to £7,000 just to set up. We regularly see families trapped by hidden annual fees and huge ‘exit charges’, paying thousands more just to try and unravel the damage.

And here is the worst part: if the council challenges any of these “solutions,” the chances are you will already be in care. This leaves your family to fight the legal battle and deal with the stress and costs of your earlier actions. It’s a complete backfire and a situation nobody wants for their children.

Your free, no-obligation information pack explains:

Why, if you have a spouse/partner, a “Mirror Will” could put your assets at risk.
How April Wills® protect your estate from ex-partners and predatory third parties.
Legally safeguarding your home to minimise future care cost fees.
How to nominate in advance someone you trust to manage your affairs if you become unable to do so.

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