Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr B’s complaint about the Council charging his son, Mr C for care he either did not receive or did not know he should pay for. This is because the Council has now waivered the charge so there is no unremedied injustice for the Ombudsman to investigate.

The complaint

1. Mr B says the Council failed to properly explain his son’s, Mr C’s, care charges are means tested or that it would impact on his direct payments. Mr B says Mr C has been charged for care he did not receive, and it has been difficult to sort out because he was passed to several different departments. Mr B says if he had known Mr C was liable for care charges he would have reduced the care he received each day. Mr B says the Council should apologise and cancel the invoice he received for £1593.00

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe:

• it is unlikely we would find fault, or
• the fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained, or
• the injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement, or
• it is unlikely we could add to any previous investigation by the Council.

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

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How I considered this complaint

3. I discussed the concerns with Mr B and considered the information and documentation he provided. I sent Mr B a copy of my draft decision for comment.

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What I found

4. Mr B complained about a backdated invoice he received from the Council for £1593.00 for Mr C’s care.
5. The Council explained the invoice was because it did not know Mr C had been receiving additional benefits which resulted in him being responsible for contributing towards his care. The Council explained Mr C’s contribution towards his care costs was more than he received in direct payments, so he was no longer entitled to them.
6. Mr B says when he tried to sort this out with the Council it passed him from one department to another, each one saying it was not its responsibility. However, Mr B says the Council has now decided to waiver the invoice it sent.
7. The Ombudsman will not investigate Mr B’s complaint. The Council has cancelled the invoice so neither Mr B nor Mr C has to pay the amount of £1593.00. There is no unremedied injustice warranting an Ombudsman investigation.

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Final decision

8. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because the Council has now waivered the charge so there is no unremedied injustice for the Ombudsman to investigate.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman