Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about care charges for his late partner. The complaint is late and there are no good reasons to exercise discretion to investigate it now.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains the Council has charged for domiciliary care for his late partner, Mrs Y, following her hospital discharge in 2020. Mr X believes Mrs Y was eligible for NHS Continuing Health Care (CHC) funding and should therefore not have been liable for the invoiced charges. He wants the Council to reimburse the charges he paid to clear the debt in September 2023.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
3. We may investigate a complaint on behalf of someone who has died or who cannot authorise someone to act for them. The complaint may be made by:

• their personal representative (if they have one), or
• someone we consider to be suitable. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26A(2), as amended)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

4. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
5. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

Back to top

My assessment

6. The Council has responded to Mr X’s complaint about care charges. It has explained Mrs Y did not meet the criteria for CHC funding and provided copies of the information it shared with her and Mr X about this in 2021. It also explained the NHS reconfirmed Mrs Y’s lack of eligibility for CHC funding in January 2023. Mrs Y sadly passed away later in January 2023, so we would be unable to remedy any injustice she may have experienced now even if we were to investigate.
7. We usually expect people to complain to us within 12 months of the events they are complaining about. Mr X has been aware of these issues since at least the beginning of 2021, when the domiciliary care provider the Council commissioned first issued invoices for Mrs Y’s care. Any concerns Mr X continues to have about the Council’s handling that occurred more than 12 months prior to him bringing his complaint to us are now significantly late. I have seen no good reasons why Mr X could not have brought his concerns to us sooner, so I will not exercise discretion to investigate those late complaint now.

Back to top

Final decision

8. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it is late and there are no good reasons why it could not have been brought to us sooner.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman