Kent County Council (22 014 003)
Category : Adult care services > Charging
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 27 Jun 2023
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council pursuing Mrs B for her late mother’s care fees. This is because there is not enough evidence of fault with actions taken by the Council. It would be reasonable for Mrs B to defend any court action taken against her if she believes she is not responsible for paying the debt.
The complaint
- Mrs B says the Council should not pursue her for monies gifted to her by her late parents which the Council says is owed for her late mother’s, care fees.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse effect on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if the tests set out in our Assessment Code are not met. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- The Council says money Mrs B gifted to herself and her brother was not approved by the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) and will include this has income for the purpose of charging her late mother for her care under section 70 of the Care Act 2014. The Council says the final invoice of £49,622.44 remains outstanding and will seek recovery of the debt.
- We could not say there is evidence of fault with the Council’s decision to pursue a debt for care fees it says Mrs B’s late mother owes. If there is no fault with the way a council makes a decision we cannot comment on it. If Mrs B disagrees, she can withhold payment and defend any action taken by the Council in court if necessary.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mrs B’s complaint because there is not enough evidence of fault with actions taken by the Council to warrant an ombudsman investigation.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman