In 2007 Government presumably Labour, in Parliament agreed that a lass OR fellow living

ALONE could have savings of £16000 , HOWEVER, if they go together,married in one

householder. Then this total i.e £32,000 was reduced to just £16,000.

Move on to 2016 and these figures have not been changed.

Yes! the single person home still has enough permitted finance . BUT not the couple.

Before anyone says,but surely the couple have enough!

Costs have gone up dramatically, even if it is only funerals to consider.

So if any of my readers have parents, now is the time to ensure they are aware of this

ancient ceiling. Since, if they are now or could be on benefits of any kind - then going

over the limit can be costly. Being unaware of the maximim savings you or your parents

can hold will not stop severe penalities on discovery. Indeed the penalities can be

thousands. Where the money came from is immaterial - even if it was from recovery

after a crime! Burglarly card fraud for example.

We hear of cases of relations discovering shoe boxes of cash when clearing out their

deceased houses. Also parents being assisted by helpers, having cash stolen, then too

proud to tell relatives. Perhaps rare but neither the less heartbreaking incidents.

Personally I was below the permitted level, then repayment of stolen credit card money

+the interest+ my monthly payments - sent me over the limit. Irronically I'd been warned

that whilst a credit card company can repay the looted funds,SHOULD they later discover

any of the items should not have been compensated -they do claw back these payments.

If you have parents, or yourself, ensure you know the requirements,plus warn against

squirreling away cash at home. Obviously 'hidden' cash in banks is not secret from

Government though. Finally if you get a windfall, and are on Government support EVEN

if it is just A COUPLE of QUID - Tell them least they may think you have other money

stashed away. Readers query this last item - In my case it was £1.06 a month pension!!