Summary: The Council failed to give adequate costs information about an emergency respite placement for an adult with social care needs. The family were shocked to receive a bill as they thought it was free, but they paid it in full. The Council will reimburse those fees, it has apologised and reminded staff not to repeat the same errors.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I will call Mrs B, says the Council failed to give any costs information about an emergency respite stay at a residential care home. It may have given information to her mother and sister, but neither party would be capable of understanding nor agreeing to those charges. The family assumed the respite stay was free, so it was a shock to receive a bill. It was stressful being chased for the money. Mrs B has paid the bill but would like the Council to refund in full.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely further investigation will lead to a different outcome.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

3. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by Mrs B and the Council. I considered the Care Act 2014 and associated statutory guidance.

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What I found

5. Mrs B’s mother (Mrs C) lived at home alone; Mrs C went to hospital following a house fire. Mrs C was discharged to her other daughter’s (Mrs D’s) house. Mrs D has her own health issues and could not look after Mrs C; the Council placed Mrs C into emergency respite at a residential care home.
6. The Council should have given the family information about the costs of the respite stay, so they could make an informed decision about whether to incur those costs or any other available options.
7. Mrs B says the Council only discussed the costs with Mrs C and Mrs D, neither of who could understand financial matters nor making an informed decision.
8. In response to Ombudsman enquiries the Council accepts there was a procedural error which did not meet the Council’s required standards. The Council has agreed to reimburse the full costs of the respite stay.
9. The Council has also apologised that it did not identify the error when Mrs B made her complaint to the Council, it has apologised for the time, trouble and distress caused by pursuing the complaint. The Council has spoken to relevant staff to prevent the problems identified in this case from happening again.
10. Further investigation by the Ombudsman would not lead to a different outcome. Mrs B is happy with the actions the Council has now taken, and so is the Ombudsman.

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Final decision

11. I have completed my investigation on the basis I am satisfied with the actions the Council has now taken to remedy the injustice caused by its fault.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman