Summary: Mr X complained about two care providers who cared for his mother on behalf of the Council. We will not investigate this complaint. The complaint about the first care provider is too late. The complaint about the second care provider relates solely to damage to property, so it would be better considered by the courts.

The complaint

1. Mr X complained about two home care providers who worked on behalf of the Council. The providers were commissioned to care for Mr X’s mother, Mrs Y. Mr X says the first care provider (Provider A) did not visit in twos as arranged, did not fill in time sheets properly and damaged items in Mrs Y’s home. Mr X says the second care provider (Provider B) also caused damage in Mrs Y’s home.
2. Mr X says the Council did not respond appropriately when he reported issues to it, and a social worker harassed him and abused Mrs Y, then alleged Mr X was abusing Mrs Y. He says the Council has also not properly dealt with his formal complaints.
3. Mr X says the events have caused distress, and an estimated £7,000 worth of damage to property. This included damage to Mrs Y’s front door, which caused a safety issue.

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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)
5. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
6. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint unless we are satisfied the council knows about the complaint and has had an opportunity to investigate and reply. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to notify the council of the complaint and give it an opportunity to investigate and reply (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(5)

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How I considered this complaint

7. I considered the information Mr X provided when he complained to us.
8. I considered Mr X’s comments on my draft decision.

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What I found

9. Provider A was commissioned to care for Mrs Y between July 2015 and May 2018. Mr X made a formal complaint to the Council in April 2019 and it did not respond to his complaint, so he contacted the Ombudsman in September 2019, 16 months after events had concluded. We cannot investigate complaints made to us more than 12 months after events, unless we decide there are good reasons. The Council was responsible for some of the delay, but I must consider whether there were good reasons for Mr X’s delay of 11 months before beginning the formal complaints process. Mr X has not told me about any good reason he did not complain sooner and so we cannot exercise discretion to consider this late complaint.
10. Mr X’s complaint to us included allegations a social worker from the Council harassed him and abused Mrs Y in November 2017. This is also too long ago for us to now consider.
11. Provider B was commissioned to care for Mrs Y from July 2018 onwards. The complaint Mr X made to us about Provider B is solely about damage he says it committed, which he estimates amounted to £1,000. These types of complaint are generally outside the Ombudsman's jurisdiction due to the reasoning in paragraph 6. Such complaints are really negligence claims and are a matter for the courts. Only a court can decide whether the Council, or the Care Provider, is liable to pay damages for any loss. It is open to Mr X to start legal action.
12. Mr X now says his complaint about Provider B is also that it abused his mother. Mr X has not yet complained to the Council about that. He should now do so, and it is open to him to bring his complaint to the Ombudsman if he remains dissatisfied after using the Council’s complaints process. He should refer the matter back to us swiftly if he does not receive a prompt response from the Council. However, we may also treat that complaint as too late given that events were already more than 12 months ago. Mr X should therefore explain the reasons for this delay if he does bring that complaint back to us.
13. It is not a good use of public resources to investigate complaints about complaint procedures, if we are unable to deal with the substantive issue. We should therefore not consider Mr X’s complaint about how the Council dealt with his complaints.

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Final decision

14. The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint. This is because the complaint about Provider A is too late and there is not a good reason Mr X did not complain sooner, and the complaint about Provider B is better dealt with as a claim for damages via the courts.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman