Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about the Council pursuing her for payment of her mother’s care. This is because her complaint is late with no good reason for the delay.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complains about the Council pursuing her for payment of her mother’s care. She believes the charges are not payable because she was previously told that some of her mother’s respite care would be free.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons for the delay in complaining. 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

4. I considered information provided by Mrs X and the Council.
5. I also considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

6. Mrs X first became aware of the care charges in September 2024. Mrs X did not complain to us until March 2026. This makes her complaint late.
7. Mrs X complained to the Council in November 2024 about the care charges. The Council provided its response to her that same month. It was therefore reasonable for Mrs X to complain to us at that time if she was dissatisfied with the Council’s response.
8. If Mrs X did not receive the Council’s November response, we cannot say this was due to fault by the Council. In any event, if she did not receive a response to her complaint then she could have followed up with the Council or complained to us sooner about the Council’s inaction. The evidence I have seen shows Mrs X did not contact the Council again until July 2025, when it contacted her about payment of the care charges. The Council’s delay or inaction since that time is not a good enough reason for the delay in complaining to us. Therefore, I will not investigate her complaint.

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Final decision

9. We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint because it is late and there are no good reasons for the delay in complaining.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman