Kate Garraway forced to 'withdraw money from pension' to stay afloat
Kate Garraway has opened up about her financial difficulties following the tragic death of her husband Derek Draper, who passed away in January after a four-year battle with the devastating effects of Covid. Due the round-the-clock care that Derek needed, Kate has now been forced to withdraw money from her pension to pay off these bills.
During a discussion about the NHS and private care on Monday's (6 May) Good Morning Britain, Kate opened up about this, explaining: "I have had to withdraw the bit you can tax free from my pension to pay for belated bills for my husband, who has now passed away.
"People are having to do things - it wasn't a huge pension in the first place - which aren't what they saved for."
Kate has previously spoken about the financial cost of caring for a loved one, with the TV personality estimating that her debts are around £500,000 to £800,000.
“It’s supposed to be a system that’s meant to catch you if you fall,” she told The Times. “But actually, it feels like it’s trying to catch you out. You feel like you’re in the dock answering questions about things that will literally mean life or death to someone you love.”
She continued: “Derek’s needs were clearly so great, yet he didn’t warrant funded care – so you think, ‘If he isn’t getting it, then who is?’”
And during a GMB episode in March, Kate expressed that she was "embarrassed" to be in debt, as she said: "I'm ashamed of the fact I'm in debt, but I'm also proud."
Co-host Richard Madeley then asked why she would be ashamed of her debt, prompting her to admit that despite having a "well paid" job at ITV, she struggled to make things work at home.
"Well, because I have an incredible job that I love, that is very well paid. I'm not a carer, travelling miles, paying their own transport to go and help somebody for minimum wage. I'm somebody that's very well paid. So, I just feel ashamed that I couldn't make it work," she said.
She opened up further about this in the recent documentary Kate Garraway: Derek's Story, which showed the final year of Derek's life. Kate explained: "Derek's care costs more than my salary from ITV and that is before you pay for a mortgage, before you pay any household bills, before you pay for anything for the kids, so we are at a crunch point. I am in debt.
"I can't earn enough money to cover my debt because I am managing Derek's care and I can't even use the money I do have to support Derek's recovery because it's going on the basics all the time." She continued: "I'm not going to pretend that I am poorly paid, I have an incredible job that I love, which is well-paid, but it's not enough."
During the hour-long ITV film, Kate added: "Time and time again the system tell us that Derek isn't sick enough, doesn't have enough of a health need to qualify for funded care. I've appealed but that still hasn't been processed two-and-a-half, three years later. If this is what it's like for me, what on Earth is it like for everybody else?
