One of the big problems with paying care fees is that nobody knows how long someone’s going to live. It’s a very difficult position to be in when you’re having to look at how much money is available, consider whether this will last the lifetime of the person needing care.

Especially if it’s someone you love or, indeed, if you have responsibility for their finances if you’re an attorney or deputy. No one likes to have to balance their emotional wish for someone to live as long as possible against the concern that their money might run out. The situation is often made worse by the need to make these decisions in a crisis, for example, when someone suddenly becomes very unwell. Financial services have an option which is called an immediate needs annuity. It’s, the only way to guarantee that the money will not run out during the person’s lifetime. How it works is that in return for a lump sum payment, the plan will pay out income, usually monthly, for the lifetime of the person who needs care. Each case is looked at individually and it’s medically underwritten so the lump sum required is specific to the individual and it differs depending upon their health. To understand how these work and if they might be right for you in your situation it’s very important to seek specialist advice from a later life financial adviser. These plans are not for everyone, not because the plan isn’t right but because in your case it may not be the right solution for you and there may be better options depending on your circumstances. The important thing is to get the right advice and make sure you feel comfortable with the risks and the options, all the options before proceeding. Because, ultimately, only with good advice about an immediate needs annuity from a specialist adviser to help you think this through, will you know if this is the option that will give you peace of mind.

There’s a wide range of equity release products available nowadays, with the providers of these plans offering many different options as well as different rates of interest and ways to repay them. And that’s why it’s best to take advice from a specialist later life financial adviser who regularly works with clients and advises them on equity release. They’ll be able to help you find the right solution. SOLLA has a later life lending advice standard which will help you to identify advisers who will be able to navigate you through all these choices and decide if equity release is right for you. A good financial adviser will help you understand the costs involved and the pitfalls as well as the benefits. Most importantly, if you’re receiving care in your own home the local authority means-testing currently disregards the value of that home. Many people take out equity release to raise some money from their home and they’re not considering using it to fund their care. However, it’s very important that you do take into account what may happen if you do need care. The money then will be assessed by the local authority when they’re looking at your eligibility for support from them.

Hello, I’m Tish Hanifan. When you’re making care funding decisions it’s important to seek financial advice from an adviser who is a later life specialist. That can make all the difference. But what should you expect from that adviser? We asked that question when setting up the organisation of which I’m the founder and joint chair, The Society of Later Life Advisors, SOLLA.

A good adviser should obviously have good technical knowledge, but they should also have more than that, they should have empathy and understanding to work alongside you to achieve the right outcome. And be someone in whom you can have confidence that they want to get this right for you and they’re not simply there just to earn money. That’s what the accreditation demonstrates.

Someone such as a SOLLA accredited adviser not only meets the requirements of the financial watchdogs, but has achieved a voluntary later life advisor accreditation which is designed to test their wider knowledge of facts which will make a difference to your decision, such as the benefit system, how local authority funding works, and how and when the National Health Service might fund all or some of the care. And, along with that, it demonstrates someone who understands what you’re maybe going through when making these choices, especially if you have the additional responsibility of making this on behalf of someone else, for example, with the power of attorney.