Summary: Miss X complained the Care Provider, White Ash Brook Care Home, did not return her father, Mr Y’s belongings after he died. She further complained the Care Provider could not explain what had happened to them and repeatedly misinformed her about what it was doing to find them. She said this caused her and her family significant distress. There was fault in the Care Provider’s actions. It was unable to provide a record of Mr Y’s belongings and did not properly communicate with Miss X. This caused Miss X distress and inconvenience. The Care Provider has made changes to its process to ensure this does not happen again and agreed to provide an apology and a £275 financial award to recognise the injustice caused to Miss X.

The complaint

1. Miss X complained the Care Provider told her on several occasions that she could collect her late father Mr Y’s belongings but was unable to provide them when she arrived. Miss X also complained the Care Provider told her it would send her photographs taken of Mr Y but has failed to do so.
2. She said this matter has caused her and her family significant emotional distress.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. 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’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with a Care Provider’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)
5. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the statutory regulator of care services. It keeps a register of care providers who show they meet the fundamental standards of care, inspects care services and issues reports on its findings. It also has power to enforce against breaches of fundamental care standards and prosecute offences.
6. Under our information sharing agreement, we will share this decision with the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

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How I considered this complaint

7. I contacted Miss X and discussed the complaint with her.
8. I made enquiries of the Care Provider and considered their response. This included a chronology of the contact between Miss X and the Care Provider and correspondence shared between Miss X and the Care Provider.
9. I wrote to Miss X and the Care Provider with the draft decision and gave them both the opportunity to comment before I made the final decision.

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What I found

Law

10. The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 set out the fundamental standards those registered to provide care services must achieve. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has issued guidance on how to meet the fundamental standards below which care must never fall.
11. Regulation 17 requires care providers to maintain accurate, complete, and detailed records in respect of each person using the service.
12. Regulation 18 states care providers should deploy enough suitably qualified competent and experienced staff to enable them to meet all other regulatory requirements described in the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

What happened

13. Mr Y was elderly and suffered with various health issues. He joined the Care Provider’s care home on 11 January 2019. At the time, the home was owned by a private company.
14. On 11 January 2020 Mr Y was admitted to hospital. The Care Provider says it kept Mr Y’s room locked. On 2 May 2020, Mr Y died. The Care Provider says a housekeeper bagged up Mr Y’s belongings and deep cleaned his room on 5 May 2020.
15. Several days after this, Miss X contacted the Care Provider to arrange collection of Mr Y’s belongings. Miss X said the care home manager told her she could pick up Mr Y’s possessions on 16 May 2020 but when she arrived none of the staff knew about this arrangement and she went home empty handed.
16. On 18 May 2020, Mrs X contacted the Care Provider again and the manager apologised. Mrs X returned to the home at the manager’s request on 23 May 2020 and again, none of the staff were able to provide Mr Y’s belongings. Mrs X phoned the Care Provider on 26 May 2020 to ask for an update. The manager told her it had found one of Mr Y’s pictures but nothing else. Miss X collected the picture and the manager told her they would continue looking for the rest of Mr Y’s belongings. The Care Provider later returned Mr Y’s television set to Miss X.
17. Miss X complained to the Care Provider on 17 August 2020. She was unhappy she had made several trips to the home and still did not have all of Mr Y’s possessions which included an antique clock and picture frames. The Care Provider said it would send her Mr Y’s TV and it would continue to look for the other items she had referred to. The Care Provider apologised and explained that the COVID-19 pandemic had impacted its resources. The Care Provider delivered Mr Y’s TV to Miss X on 24 September 2020.
18. Miss X complained to the Care Provider on 19 October 2020 as she had still not received the rest of Mr Y’s belongings.
19. The Care Provider investigated Miss X’s complaint and interviewed the head and deputy home managers as well as the housekeeper on duty when Mr Y died. The Care Provider wrote to Mrs X on 6 November 2020 confirming the housekeeper had packed up Mr Y’s belongings and had been unable to locate the rest of Mr Y’s personal effects. The Care Provider said it would continue searching and offered Miss X an apology and a £200 goodwill payment. The Care Provider also said it would arrange to send Mrs Y some photographs staff at the care home had taken of Mr Y.
20. Miss X told the Care Provider she wanted a more detailed explanation for why it could not find her father’s belongings but the Care Provider was unable to give her one. Miss X later brought her complaint to the Ombudsman.
21. In response to our enquiries, the Care Provider confirmed it did not begin taking an inventory of service user’s belongings until new management took over the care home in 2020. The Care Provider has now implemented an inventory and discourages service users from bringing high value items into the home. The Care Provider confirmed it will also label and take photographs of service user’s belongings and save this to their care files.
22. The Care Provider said it spent significant time trying to locate the items Miss X had listed but had not been successful. The Care Provider said it had asked Miss X for a description of the items and photographs, but she had been unable to provide any.
23. Miss X maintains there were several photographs in Mr Y’s room in antique frames which remain unaccounted for. Miss X confirms she did not provide a photograph of the clock but feels her description should be sufficient. Miss X also said the Care Provider failed to provide the photographs it referenced in its final response to her.

Findings

24. Care Providers are required by law to keep accurate records and provide person centred care. The Care Provider has confirmed it did not take an inventory of Mr Y’s belongings prior when he joined the home. The Care Provider is unable to confirm which possessions Mr Y brought to the home and cannot say where the items Miss X requested are. This is fault. Miss X has therefore been left with a sense of uncertainty about her father’s belongings and this has likely caused her distress. The Care Provider has implemented a system to prevent this issue reoccurring, but this does not address the injustice Miss X has suffered.
25. The evidence shows the Care Provider was unclear in its communication with Miss X, causing her to make several trips to the residential home unnecessarily and spend time chasing the Care Provider for an update. Further, Miss X says she has not received the photographs the Care Provider told her it would send her. Having reviewed the evidence, the Care Provider’s complaint handling has fallen short of what the Ombudsman would expect and has contributed to the breakdown in trust between Miss X and the Care Provider. The Care Provider has apologised and made an offer of a £200 financial award however, I consider it should increase this offer to be more reflective of the shortfall in service Miss X has experienced.

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Agreed action

26. Within one month of the date of my final decision, the Care Provider has agreed to provide Miss X with a financial award of £275 to address the injustice she experienced because of its actions.

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Final decision

27. The Care Provider was at fault when it failed to keep a record of Mr Y’s possessions and did not communicate properly with Miss X. I have completed the investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman