Summary: The Council has remedied the outstanding injustice on this complaint by revising the backdated charges for care to zero. The Council has also apologised for any stress caused.

The complaint

1. The complainant, who I shall refer to as Miss X, complains on behalf of her grandmother Miss G. She complains her grandmother was told that her care would be free, but then she received a backdated invoice from the Council for the cost of the care for the previous 2 years.

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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 we could add to any previous investigation by the Council, or
• 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 read the papers submitted by Miss X and discussed the complaint with her.
5. I gave the Council and Miss X the opportunity to comment on my draft decision.

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What I found

6. Miss X complained to the Ombudsman in June 2019 that the Council had invoiced her grandmother for care that she had been told was free.
7. The Council wrote to Miss G on 15 September 2019 to say that it had revised the backdated charges to nil from. The Council apologised for any undue stress caused. In April 2019 the Council told Miss G that her calculated weekly contribution was £36.
8. Miss X explained the family were happy with the personal remedy, but still have concerns that it may happen to someone else. Miss X is aggrieved that the Council referred to the care as ‘free’ then charged for the care.
9. I understand Miss X’s concerns but I consider the Council has remedied the outstanding injustice caused to her grandmother. It has said Miss G no longer needs to pay the invoiced charges from January 2017 until April 2019 and has apologised. In this situation, I do not see what further the Ombudsman could achieve by investigating the complaint.

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Final decision

10. I have completed my investigation. This complaint is upheld. There was fault but the outstanding injustice has been remedied by the Council.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman