Summary: Mr C complains Council charges were consistently wrong. This caused Mr C time and trouble. It also increased his pre-existing anxiety. The Council failed to bill Mr C correctly and take action to correct its mistakes expediently. To remedy the complaint the Council has agreed to apologise to Mr C, pay him £200 and created a process for Mr C to follow to ensure bills are correct. It has also agreed to review how it responds to concerns, communicates with Mr C, and reminds the care agency about the importance of recording missed care calls.

The complaint

1. The complainant who I call Mr C complains the Council closed the Autism Team and failed to bill him correctly for care calls.
2. Mr C says the Council’s actions have worsened his anxiety and he has had time and trouble in contacting the Council to resolve the matter.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

3. We investigate complaints of injustice caused by ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. I have used the word fault to refer to these. We consider whether there was fault in the way an organisation made its decision. If there was no fault in the decision making, we cannot question the outcome. (Local Government Act 1974, section 34(3), as amended)
4. We investigate complaints about councils and certain other bodies. Where an individual, organisation or private company is providing services on behalf of a council, we can investigate complaints about the actions of these providers. (Local Government Act 1974, section 25(7), as amended)
5. If we are satisfied with an organisation’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)

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How I considered this complaint

6. I read the complaint correspondence and an email from a Council officer to Mr C. I spoke with a Council officer to understand what actions it was taking. I considered the relevant law and guidance which included:-
• Care Act 2014;
• Care and Support Statutory Guidance (CSSG);
• Equality Act 2010.
7. Mr C and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Background information

8. Mr C has Autism, mental health problems and severe anxiety especially around financial matters. Before COVID-19 Mr C received services from the Council’s Autism Team. This ended as Mr C was living with someone who was clinically vulnerable and felt they may be at risk from care workers.

What should have happened

9. Care and Support Statutory Guidance says where a Council charges it must carry out a financial assessment. The Council should explain how it has carried out the assessment, the charge, the frequency of the charge; and if there is any variation in charges, the reason. The Council should ensure the charges are easily understandable, in line with its duties.
10. The Equality Act 2010 says an individual or organisation that provides a service to the public, such as councils, must not treat someone worse just because of one or more “protected characteristics”. Protected characteristics include people with disabilities.
11. When the duty arises, the public body is under a positive and proactive duty to look at removing or preventing obstacles to a disabled person accessing its services. If the adjustments are reasonable it must make them.

What happened

12. In April 2022 Mr C restarted Council support. The Council did not complete a financial assessment until Mr C complained. In its complaint response the Council apologised for the delay in completing the financial assessment and how it communicated the disbandment of the Autism team to Mr C.
13. Mr C received his first invoice on 18 July. This was wrong. The Council failed to invoice for the next two months and when Mr C received two further invoices they were also wrong as they charged for support he had not received. Mr C wrote to the Council after each bill explaining the errors and paid for care he received. The Council did not properly amend the bills until Mr C escalated his complaint to the Ombudsman.
14. The Council found the invoicing errors were caused by the care agency failing to record missed care worker calls on the Council’s portal. The Council says it has reminded the care agency to do this but to prevent further instances has also asked Mr C to tell the Council if the care agency misses calls. It has provided an email address to do this and a single point of contact for Mr C to use now and if he has concerns in the future.
15. The Council has accepted Mr C has had time and trouble in raising and resolving his complaint and that this would have had a greater effect on Mr C as he has anxiety. In acknowledgement of this it paid Mr C £200.
16. During the course of this complaint Mr C says he has received a further two incorrect invoices, for October and November.

Was there fault causing injustice?

17. The Council has accepted fault in delaying Mr C’s financial assessment, the way in which it communicated with Mr C about the disbandment of the Autism team, providing wrong invoices, and failing to respond to his concerns properly.
18. The Council also failed to consider reasonable adjustments for Mr C which arise from his Autism and anxiety. This is fault and not in line with the Equality Act.
19. Mr C has had time trouble and increased anxiety because of the Council’s faults. I consider the actions the Council has agreed to take is in line with what the Ombudsman would usually recommend.

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Agreed action

20. I have found fault with the Council’s actions which have caused Mr C injustice. The Council has agreed to:
1. apologise to Mr C for failing to complete a financial assessment expediently, bill correctly and deal with his correspondence properly;
2. provide evidence of the £200 paid to Mr C in acknowledgment of his time and trouble in contacting the Council and the anxiety this caused;
3. through contract monitoring ensures the care agency involved is aware of the steps it needs to take when it cannot provide care;
4. write to Mr C confirming the actions the Council intends to make to ensure as far as possible Mr C does not have future problems with his invoicing;
5. discuss Mr C’s communication needs and develop a suitable written plan to support him with contact with the Council. This should consider needs arising from both Mr C’s Autism and anxiety.
21. The Council should complete (a), (b), (d) and (e) within one month of the final decision and (c) within three months of the final decision.

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Final decision

22. I found fault in the Council’s actions which caused Mr C injustice. I consider the actions above are suitable to remedy the complaint. I have now completed my investigation and closed the complaint.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman