Summary: We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint about the Council seeking payment of fees relating to his mother Mrs Y’s care in 2020. The complaint is late and there are no good reasons for us to investigate it now.

The complaint

1. Mr X is Mrs Y’s son. Mrs Y is elderly and has mental and physical health conditions. Mr X complains on Mrs Y’s behalf that the Council:
1. failed to advise Mrs Y or her representative that home care provided from May to July 2020, after a six-week period of free reablement care, was chargeable;
2. is unfairly pursuing Mrs Y for the care fees of almost £800.
2. Mr X says the matter has caused Mrs Y a great deal of distress, as she is struggling with her psychiatric and physical health. He says the Council has sent constant demand letters. Mr X says he has been caused trouble and lost self‑employed work hours dealing with the matter.
3. Mr X wants the Council to:
• admit it did not tell Mrs Y about the care charges or what they would be; and
• cancel the entire bill.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

4. 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)

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How I considered this complaint

5. I considered information from Mr X and the Council, and the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Mr X first complained to the Council about the charges for Mrs Y’s care in September 2020. He stated Mrs Y’s social worker had not told her the care she received after the six weeks of free reablement care would be chargeable. He asked the Council to waive the care fees. The Council replied to Mr X’s complaint in October 2020, rejecting the complaint. They advised Mr X that if he remained dissatisfied, he could refer his complaint to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, and provided our online address. Mr X did not complain to us after this October 2020 letter. He continued to correspond with the Council which ultimately wrote to him in January 2023, repeating its advice to contact us. Mr X brought his complaint about the care charges to us in March 2023. Therefore, Mr X’s complaint is late.
7. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons to do so. The events complained of happened three years ago. It is unlikely we could now make a finding on the 2020 fees advice to Mrs Y based on the recollections of people involved at that time. Mr X also knew of the care fees in 2020 that he and Mrs Y dispute within his Ombudsman complaint. Council officers told Mr X about our service in their October 2020 complaint response letter when rejecting his complaint. That information meant he could have raised the complaint with us within 12 months, rather than almost two and half years later. Mr X corresponded further with the Council about the disputed care fees. Mr X could have instead complained to us about this matter in time. There are no good reasons for us to investigate this complaint now and we will not do so.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because the complaint is late and there are no good reasons to investigate it now.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman