Archives for September 2017

If you are considering giving your home or another significant asset away, make sure you receive impartial advice about both the advantages and risks before doing so. Some individuals may receive advice from non-solicitor advice services but unfortunately those services often provide improper advice about the gifting of assets, claiming to avoid Inheritance Tax or care fees. These services also tend to charge significant fees but sadly the schemes involved very often turn out to be ineffective.

“I regularly see a number of clients who are keen to give assets away to mitigate their Inheritance Tax position or to protect their estates from care home fees in the future but unfortunately they are not aware of all of the risks involved. My duty is to explain both the disadvantages as well as the benefits, but no professional should advise a client whether or not to give away an asset; it is for the client to reach their own decision, having considered all of the pros and cons involved and having taken into account their own personal circumstances.” says Nina Sperring, solicitor at the Chester law firm.

Some of the advantages of gifting assets

• The share in the asset that you no longer own may not be taken into account if you have to undergo means testing for benefits or publicly funded services such as care fees
• It may provide you with reassurance for the future – knowing that the beneficiary has already been provided for.
• It may make matters easier when it comes to administering your estate when you pass away.

Some of the risks of gifting assets

The Law as well as Governmental Rules regularly change however some of the risks involved at this moment in time are:

• There may be tax implications if your property is sold for more than it is worth at the time the gift is made. Furthermore, if an asset has been gifted and you continue to retain a benefit (for example if you continue to live in your home after it has been given away) then this could be treated as a Gift With a Reservation for Inheritance Tax purposes. The Government also introduced an additional tax in 2004, which seeks to catch schemes that previously escaped the Gift With a Reservation rules. This is known as ‘Pre-owned Asset Tax” and has the effect of charging income tax on assets where the individual continues to enjoy/occupy the same.
• The full value of the gifted asset could still be taken into account for funding long term care as there are anti-avoidance measures in relation to means testing. The anti-avoidance framework states that if you transfer assets, such as your home, into someone else’s name in order to deliberately avoid Care fees then the Local Authority can treat the value of the asset as part of your capital when they are means testing.
• If you move into a home but do not have the financial resources to pay for your care because of the gift of property then the Local Authority may only pay for the basic level of care which would no doubt leave you in a position where you would need the financial support of others. You should normally be sure that you have sufficient liquid assets available to fund your care to ensure that you do not suffer any hardship as a result of transferring your property.

It is therefore important that if you are considering giving assets away that you seek professional advice from a solicitor so that you are fully informed of all of the risks and advantages involved.  By using a solicitor you could save your estate and beneficiaries a great deal of potential difficulty in the future.

For more information or for professional legal advice, contact our solicitors on 0800 988 3674 or email advice@bartletts.co.uk

If you are trying to make a claim for compensation for personal injury and the person at fault is denying liability, it is important that you instruct the help of a specialist personal injury solicitor if your case goes to trial.

Bartletts specialist personal injury solicitors in Chester recently helped a man whose finger was crushed in a bar and the bar owner denied liability, win his case at court. Bartletts were at his side throughout the trial to ensure he received the compensation he deserved.

On Christmas Eve, the 33-year-old man and his partner and friend had gone to a wine bar for drinks to celebrate the festivities. He left his friends to use the bathroom which had a sash window that had been opened for ventilation. As it was very cold, the man went to close the window. He pulled down on the window but it suddenly rushed down, trapping the man’s hand and crushing the middle finger of his right hand.

The crush injury to his finger was so severe that he had to have surgery. Then, due to unforeseen complications post-surgery, he contracted an infection in his nail bed. He had to have a further operation to remove the nail bed, followed by treatment for the infection.

When the man came to see one of Bartletts expert personal injury solicitors in Chester, he was still suffering from stiffness in his finger and minor reduced grip. Our solicitors established that the owners of the bar were at fault as the window was defective. However, the bar owners denied liability for the incident and the case went to trial.

During the trial, the bar owners claimed that signs were displayed by the window to warn people of the risk. However, our lawyers were well prepared and presented photographs of the offending window immediately after the incident, showing no signage. From this fundamental evidence, the judge found that the window was defective and the bar owners had failed to put up signs, so ruled in favour of our client. The man was awarded a significant sum of compensation for personal injury and associated out of pocket expenses.

For free and impartial legal advice regarding your personal injury, please contact Bartletts Solicitors on Freephone 0800 988 3674 or Chester – 01244 405 399 or from a mobile on 0333 200 4465  or email advice@bartletts.co.uk

E-cigarettes are a relatively new product which increasing numbers of people are using as an alternative to smoking, or as an aid to quit.

At the same time, an increasing number of incidents where e-cigarettes are malfunctioning are being reported in the press. Concerns about the safety of these products have been raised, highlighting the lack of regulation or knowledge of how and where these are manufactured.

Bartletts specialist personal injury solicitors in Wrexham, have seen a number of people who have been injured as a result of using e-cigarettes. We recently helped a man who suffered severe burns when his e-cigarette exploded when charging.

The 40-year-old warehouse worker had been smoking an e-cigarette throughout the day and it needed to be recharged. He plugged it in and placed it next to him so the battery could recharge. Unexpectedly, the e-cigarette exploded, burning the man’s leg through his jeans.

The man was rushed to the accident and emergency department of his local hospital where he was examined and treated for severe burns to his leg. Doctors at the hospital dressed the burns and prescribed painkillers.

When the man came to see our expert personal injury solicitors in Wrexham, the burns had left him with permanent scarring on his leg.

Our dedicated team of lawyers established that the e-cigarette was to blame and sued the company that had supplied the e-cigarette to the client.

Bartletts Solicitors successfully won a claim against the supplier’s insurance company for substantial compensation for personal injuries as well as compensation for his damaged clothing

If you have been injured by an e-cigarette and for impartial legal advice regarding your personal injury, please contact Bartletts Solicitors on Freephone 0800 988 3674 or from a mobile on 0333 200 4465  or email advice@bartletts.co.uk.