Fair Deal Advisors has been established now for 6 months. During that time we have been engaged by many clients who have found the Fair Deal application process to be somewhat complex and sometimes confusing. It has been very rewarding to be able to work with our clients to assist them to get comfortably and successfully through the process and obtain approval for the Fair Deal benefit.
During the engagement process, each client has presented their own individual concerns and queries in relation to completing the process and often these issues are different for each client. However, a recurring query that is presented in various guises from many of our clients is the issue of the declaration of all assets.
It is our experience that the majority of applicants are very content to make a full declaration of all income and assets and they fully understand the necessity to do so in order to successfully complete the application process. However, there is an element of uncertainty as to what happens to the assessment for personal contribution in the event that financial circumstances change for the beneficiary of the scheme in future years. It is important to understand that the HSE expect all benefit recipients to keep their contribution relevant to their financial circumstances even during the period of benefit payment. This means that there is an expectation that if a scheme member finds that their financial position improves in the future through inheritance or other good fortune, there are consequences for the amount of assessed Fair Deal benefit that they can receive from the scheme.
Conversely, if the scheme member’s financial position weakens during the years of claiming the Fair Deal benefit, they can apply for a review of their personal contribution to be reviewed with a view to possibly agreeing a decrease in personal contribution in line with their changed circumstances.
In fairness to the Fair Deal Scheme, it is a genuinely “fair deal” in this regard!