Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s failure to invoice Miss X’s daughter Ms Y for care charges for several months. This is because an investigation would be unlikely to result in a worthwhile outcome.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained on her daughter Ms Y’s behalf that the Council failed to provide Ms Y with invoices for her care charges for several months, which led to a large backdated invoice.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide:

• any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• there is no worthwhile outcome achievable by our investigation.

(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Miss X and the Council.
4. I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

5. The Council carried out a financial assessment for Miss X’s daughter Ms Y to determine how much she should contribute towards the cost of her care in September 2022. Following this, Miss X complained to the Council after she received an invoice for care charges incurred by her daughter between December 2021 and January 2023 as she had not received invoices for several months.
6. The Council reviewed the account and cancelled the invoice. The Council apologised and explained it had delayed issuing invoices due to an update in its systems. The Council later produced an invoice for care charges from April 2023 and offered Miss X a repayment plan. The Council also explained it would be issuing monthly invoices going forward.
7. Miss X has brought her complaint to us as she remains unhappy about the delay in the Council producing invoices for Ms Y’s care and the resulting large outstanding invoice this created. The Council has acknowledged the fault and apologised for it. It has also offered Miss X a repayment plan. As the outstanding invoice represents valid care charges, the injustice to Ms Y is minimal because she would always have been expected to make these payments. An investigation would therefore be unlikely to provide a worthwhile outcome for her.

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Final decision

8. We will not investigate Miss X’s complaint because an investigation would not lead to a worthwhile outcome.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman