Local Government Ombudsman steps in on care home top up fees

The Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) is reminding councils across England that they are responsible for the actions of the care homes they work with.
The advice follows an LGO investigation into Merton Council in which a contracted private home, Sutton Court Care Centre, asked a family to pay top-up fees – which they had no right to demand.

The error came to light when the family of an elderly woman contacted the council about having to pay the difference between the allowance their relative was entitled to from the council and the amount charged by the care home.

The woman had been living at the home on a council-funded placement; private residents generally pay more for their care than the council’s standard rate.

The family believed they had already been paying the woman’s contribution, but it later transpired that the sums the care home had requested were a top-up to make the fee the same as for private residents. The assessed financial contribution was not payable to the care home but to the council.

Additionally, as the contract for care was between the council and Sutton Court there should have been no fee negotiation between the care home and the woman’s family. The care home was not entitled to any more funding than the council’s usual rate.

Dr Jane Martin, Local Government Ombudsman, said:
“I know from the many complaints that we receive that this is not an isolated case. The law is clear: it says that the actions of the care provider in carrying out these arrangements shall be treated as actions of or on behalf of the council.
“Therefore I hold the council responsible for the actions taken by the care home provider in seeking to extract extra funding from the family.
“I hope my report will serve as a warning to other councils that they are responsible for any contracted providers’ activities, whether they have instructed them to act or not.” Following the LGO report, Merton Council will work with the care provider to reimburse the family for the extra money they paid directly to Sutton Court in top-up charges.

The ombudsman has also recommended that the council make all parties that it contracts to provide care on its behalf aware that they cannot charge extra fees for the same care directly to the service user or their family.

Officers will also have to report back to the LGO within three months on their progress.

Read this and other Social Care News stories on the Care Industry News website.

Care Industry News