Summary: We will not investigate this complaint that a carer gave the complainant a cold. This is because it is unlikely we could add to the Council’s response.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Ms X, says a carer visited while she had a cold and gave the illness to Ms X. Ms X says the Council has failed to take responsibility and has accused her of lying. Ms X wants an apology and for the Council to take responsibility.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Ombudsman investigates 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 an investigation if we decide we could not add to any previous investigation by the organisation. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6))

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by Ms X and the Council; this includes information from the agency that provided the carer. I considered our Assessment Code and comments Ms X made in reply to a draft of this decision.

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My assessment

4. Ms X describes herself as medically vulnerable having been seriously ill in 2020. Ms X was visited by a carer in 2020. Ms X says the carer told her that she had a cold. Ms X was subsequently unwell with a cold which included breathlessness. Ms X says the carer is responsible for her catching a cold. Ms X has since moved to a different care company.
5. The care company said the carer was not ill and provided a statement from the carer in which she confirmed she was not unwell when she visited. The company said the carer was wearing PPE and a face mask and it could not be proven that the carer made Ms X ill.
6. Ms X also complained to the Council about the response she received when she reported the issue to a social worker. The Council agreed the response from the social worker was not up to standard and said it had raised this with the social worker. The Council repeated there was no evidence the carer had made Ms X ill but accepted the incident had caused some anxiety and uncertainty. The Council apologised because some of the visits from the care agency had been late.
7. I will not investigate this complaint because it is unlikely we could add to the Council’s response. Ms X is convinced the carer made her ill while the carer says she was not unwell; it would not be possible for us to form a view about whether the carer was sick in 2020 and infected Ms X. I have no reason to disbelieve Ms X but, equally, there is no reason for me to question the statement from the carer. It is unfortunate Ms X became unwell but there is no evidence the carer made her ill. In addition, the Council has apologised for its response and recognised that the incident had a negative impact on Ms X. The Council has not accused Ms X of lying but has explained why it cannot uphold her allegation.

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Final decision

8. I will not investigate this complaint because it is unlikely we could add to the Council’s response.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman