Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s decision to charge Mrs Y for residential care services. This is because the complaint is late and there is no good reason to investigate it now.

The complaint

1. Mr X complains on behalf of the estate of his relative, Mrs Y. Sadly, Mrs Y has died since the events complained of. Mr X says the Council delayed arranging domiciliary care for Mrs Y, which caused her to stay in residential care for longer than necessary. He disputes the Council’s decision to charge Mrs Y for the residential care she received in that period and says the Council did not clearly explain that it would charge her.
2. Mr X says Mrs Y incurred significant legal costs as a result. The Council is also seeking over £11,000 from Mrs Y’s estate. He wants the Council to reduce the fees to reflect what Mrs Y would have paid if domiciliary care had been arranged sooner.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word fault to refer to these. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in how the organisation made its decision, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
4. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
5. 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

6. I considered information provided by Mr X.
7. I also considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

8. Mrs Y and Mr X first became aware of the care charges in late 2022, following receipt of the Council’s invoice. Mr X, on behalf of Mrs Y, then complained to the Council about the invoice. In early 2023, the Council decided not to uphold the complaint and said the family could complain to us.
9. Neither Mrs Y nor Mr X complained to us at the time. Instead, they waited five months then sought legal advice. Correspondence between their solicitors and the Council continued into early 2024. In mid-2024, the Council carried out a financial assessment, which adjusted the charges. Mr X then waited an additional nine months before complaining to us. Mr X says he is no longer using solicitors due to the costs involved.
10. In line with the restriction in paragraph 5, we do not investigate late complaints unless there is a good reason. This helps us make fair, evidence-based decisions about recent events, by enabling us to decline an investigation into historic matters, which could and should have formed the basis of a complaint to us far sooner.
11. There is no evidence that Mrs Y lacked capacity in early 2023, or that she or Mr X were prevented from complaining to us within 12 months of then. Choosing to pursue legal advice rather than following the advice to complain to us does not, in itself, justify the delay. Additionally, there seems no good reason for the signficant delays in seeking legal advice in 2023 and raising a complaint with us after the Council’s assessment in 2024.
12. The issues raised are now around three years old. We have no reason to believe an investigation would lead us to recommend current service improvements or has significant wider current public interest. Therefore, I see no good reason to investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

13. We will not investigate this complaint because it is late without good enough reason to investigate it now.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman