Attendance Allowance in a care home

If you are ‘self-funding’, or in other words paying the full cost of your care yourself with no help from your local council, you can claim Attendance Allowance, even if you are receiving Pension Credit or other income-related benefits. However, if you are getting financial help from the local council you will not be able to claim Attendance Allowance. If you are already receiving Attendance Allowance when you enter the home you can continue to receive it for the first four weeks.

If you are receiving financial help from the local council while you sell your property you should still be able to get Attendance Allowance. This is because you are still technically self-funding, as you will be expected to repay any local council funding you have received once the property has been sold.

If you stay in a care home on a temporary basis, for example, for respite care, your Attendance Allowance will not be affected, unless you are there for more than four weeks. After four weeks, if you are not self-funding, it will be withdrawn until you leave the home. Stays that are less than 28 days apart will be added together and counted as one stay, so a number of short stays close together could affect the amount of Attendance Allowance you receive. This is known as the 28-day linking rule.

In Scotland, your Attendance Allowance will stop four weeks after you move into a care home if you get money from the local council towards the costs of your personal care.

You can get advice from your local Citizens Advice Bureau or advice centre or call SeniorLine on 0808 800 6565 (0808 808 7575 in Northern Ireland).

Attendance Allowance in hospital

After 28 days in hospital your Attendance Allowance will stop. The 28 days should not include the day you go in or the day you are discharged.

If you go into hospital for short periods (with less than 28 days between stays) they will be added together and count as one stay.

If you are going into hospital inform the DLA and AA helpline on 0845 7123 456. Let them know when you are discharged. It will start paying your benefit again when you come out (if it was stopped because your stay was over 28 days). You will not have to put in a new claim.

If you are terminally ill and staying in a non-NHS hospice, it is likely you will be able to continue to receive your Attendance Allowance.