Middlesbrough Borough Council (21 012 269)
Category : Adult care services > Domiciliary care
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 06 Jan 2022
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s actions in relation to Mr X’s mother before she died. This is because Mr X is not a suitable person to bring this complaint.
The complaint
- Mr X complains the Council failed to investigate his concerns about his mother before she died. Mr X says that because of this he has lost out on his inheritance and was not able to attend his mother’s funeral.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
- We may investigate a complaint on behalf of someone who has died or who cannot authorise someone to act for them. The complaint may be made by their personal representative (if they have one), or someone we consider to be suitable. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26A(2), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X is not the executor of his mother’s will. This forms part of his complaint as he believes the executor took advantage of his mother. Therefore, I have considered whether he is a suitable person to bring this complaint.
- Mr X was estranged from his mother at the time of her death. The Council and other organisations, including a care provider and the police had visited Mr X’s mother and found that she had capacity to make decisions about her welfare and finances. This means the Council and the other organisations involved were satisfied that she was able to choose the person who should be responsible for managing her estate after her death. Therefore, Mr X is not a suitable person to bring this complaint on behalf of his mother and we cannot investigate it.
- If Mr X has concerned about his mother’s will or the actions of the executor her should seek legal advice.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because he is not a suitable person to bring a complaint on behalf of his mother.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman