Do You Have To Pay For Carers In Your Own Home?

Whether you’ll pay for your home care is based on the results of a financial assessment, which looks at the total value of your savings and income. In certain cases, the NHS will also pay for some or all of your home care. This article explains when you have to pay for carers in your own home and how to find home care for all your care needs.

In this article:

1. Do you need to pay for a home carer?
2. Do people living with dementia have to pay for home care?
3. How much does a carer in your own home cost?
4. How to find a paid carer
5. Support for people who pay for their own home care
6. What to do if you disagree with the outcome of your financial assessment
7. Find home care through Lottie

Do You Need To Pay For a Home Carer?

Whether you need to pay for a home carer in your own home is determined by a financial assessment. This immediately follows a care needs assessment and looks at the total value of your savings and income. Assets such as your property aren’t included in a financial assessment for home care (whereas they would be for care in a care home).

Each part of the UK has different savings thresholds. If you’re above the upper threshold, you'll pay for your care. If you’re between the two thresholds, your local authority will partially fund your care. If you’re below the lower threshold, your local authority will fully fund your care.

Our 2024 Care Seeker Survey found that the proportion of people who use personal savings to pay for their own care has significantly increased since 2021, from 41% to 65%.

When paying for home care in Scotland, councils are recommended to disregard the first £10,000 of someone's savings if they're over the State Pension age, and the first £6,000 if they're under it. This person will then make a weekly tariff contribution towards their home care, based on the rest of their savings.

You could also get NHS funding. NHS continuing healthcare is for people assessed as having a ‘primary health need’. If eligible, the NHS will arrange and entirely fund your care.

Finally, NHS intermediate care is for people who have spent time in the hospital after an accident or illness. This is usually provided for one or two weeks, and for a maximum of six weeks, depending on availability in your area and how quickly you can live independently at home. You may have to pay for some types of intermediate care yourself.

Do People Living With Dementia Have To Pay For Home Care?

Usually, people living with dementia do have to pay for home care. The only exception to this is if they require support from registered nurses. If this is the case, they might qualify for NHS continuing healthcare or NHS intermediate care.

NHS-funded nursing care is also available, but this is only for people who receive nursing care in a nursing home.

How Much Does a Carer In Your Own Home Cost?

There are a few types of home care available. Costs will vary from agency to agency and on whereabouts you are in the UK, but here are the average prices, based on the home care providers we list:

• Hourly (domiciliary) care - £28 per hour

• Live-in care - £228 per day

• Overnight care - £187 per night for sleeping care (where the carer is available on a limited number of occasions) and £244 per night for waking care (where the carer is available throughout the night)

How To Find a Paid Carer

You can use Lottie to find a paid home carer near you. Simply use our free service to contact a home carer and find the perfect option for you or your loved one. You can also request a free list of home care agencies, where our knowledgeable care experts will send you suitable home care providers in your area with availability.

Each home care listing on our website includes the types of home care available, what funding types are accepted, whether care is available on a fixed-term or ongoing basis, and the specific support provided.

For example, many Lottie home care agencies offer personal care support such as bathroom assistance, household support like laundry and gardening, and specialist care services for people living with various medical conditions.

We’re partnered with several nationwide home care operators, including:

• Dove Home Care
• ENA Care Group
• Helping Hands
• Hometouch
• Promedica24
• The Good Care Group
• Trinity Homecare
• Visiting Angels

There are a few other ways you can find a paid carer:

• The NHS has a list of national home care providers
• Speak to your local authority’s adult social care services department to see what home care agencies are in your area
• Find home care agencies through your country’s regulatory body. These are the Care Quality Commission (England), the Care Inspectorate (Scotland), the Care Inspectorate Wales and the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (Northern Ireland)

Support For People Who Pay For Their Own Home Care

People who pay for their own home care may be eligible for Attendance Allowance or Personal Independence Payment (PIP). Attendance Allowance is for people above the State Pension age, while PIP is for people below it.

If you have a carer who looks after you for 35 hours a week or more and earns less than £151 after deducting tax, National Insurance and any expenses, they could also be eligible for Carer’s Allowance. This earning threshold is due to rise to £196 in April 2025.

What To Do If You Disagree With the Outcome of Your Financial Assessment

You have the right to complain if you don’t agree with the outcome of your financial assessment or how this assessment was carried out.

First, you should complain to your local council. Their website will have a formal complaints procedure.

If you aren’t happy with how your local council handles this complaint, you can then go to the local government and social care ombudsman. This is someone who independently investigates complaints about various organisations.

Lottie matches care seekers with the best home carers for their care needs. You can request a free list of home care agencies, where we’ll find you home care providers with availability in your local area.