Daughter awarded £127,500 from mother’s estate for dementia care at home
Bern Rogers has been awarded £127,500 from her late mother’s estate for providing care at home for two and a half years. The High Court found she was owed payment after evidence that her mother wanted her care to be paid for, a decision experts say could influence disputes over unpaid family care.
Sheila Wills, who had dementia and was one of nine children’s mother, chose to live with Rogers rather than pay for professional care. Rogers initially took £100,000 from her mother’s account after her death and was acquitted of theft and fraud; she later sued the estate’s executor, her brother, for £135,000. The award covers 850 days of care, and the estate had said it would appeal.
In short
- Bern Rogers won £127,500 for caring for her mother at home.
- The award covers 850 days of care.
- The ruling may affect future claims against estates.
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The case for
Rogers’s care kept her mother at home, where Sheila Wills had chosen to live, and spared the estate the cost of professional care. If Wills intended her daughter to be paid, awarding reasonable compensation recognises substantial work and helps prevent family carers from being left financially disadvantaged after a relative’s death.
The case against
An estate must be distributed according to reliable evidence of the deceased’s wishes and the law, not simply because a relative provided care. Where payment was not clearly agreed or recorded while the person was alive, a large award can reduce other beneficiaries’ inheritances and create uncertainty in family caregiving arrangements.
Explained simply
Sheila Wills had dementia and lived with her daughter Bern Rogers for about two and a half years. Wills chose care at home with Rogers instead of paying for professional care. After Wills died, Rogers sought payment from her estate for the care she had provided.
Wills’s estate was managed by her son, who was also Rogers’s brother. The dispute turned on whether Wills had wanted Rogers to be paid, and the court considered evidence of her wishes. The case matters because it may help shape how similar disagreements over unpaid care by relatives are handled.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “Daughter who cared for her dementia-hit mother at home for more than two years is awarded £127,000 from her estate after legal battle with brother”.