The best thing to do is to check the care home contract your loved one entered when they moved into the home. It should give clear instructions on what will happen following their death. Out of courtesy, the care home should also make you aware of any charges that may arise in a timely manner therefore giving enough time to avoid them.

If your loved one was receiving or partly funding their own care, there are a few important points to bear in mind:

Local Authority Funding:

Local Authorities will stop paying care homes fees on or for up to three days after the date of a care home resident’s death, depending on their agreement with the care home.

If there are unpaid, backdated fees, the Local Authority is still responsible for settling them.

Partially-funded:

If you are paying a top-up fee for a loved one and they die, once the local authority stops paying, so can you.

If your loved one is receiving NHS Nursing Care Funding (FNC), this will also stop shortly after death. The care home should not charge the shortfall on these fees to the estate or next of kin.

Self-funded:

When a care home resident who self-funds their care dies, any unpaid care home fees are charged to their estate. The care home will issue an invoice to the person in charge of the resident’s estate, and the money can be taken from their bank account(s) or the sale of their property.

Will a care home refund fees that were paid in advance after a resident dies?

Care home fees that were paid in advance should be refunded. Although the care home can still charge for the three-day period after death, and longer if agreed, any prepayment exceeding this (apart from clearing and storage costs) must be refunded to their estate.