Summary: We will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint about incorrect care home charges by the Council. She says the charges relate to time when her late husband was in hospital and not using his room at the care home. We are unlikely to find fault by the Council for the invoice charges.

The complaint

1. The complainant (Mrs X) complains about the Council incorrectly charging for care home fees in respect of her late husband (Mr X). She says the Council has charged her for four weeks of residential care despite Mr X being in hospital for that period of time and where he later died. As a desired outcome, Mrs X wants the Council to waive the invoice charges.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’, which we call ‘fault’. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the per-son making the complaint, which we call ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We do not start or continue an investigation if we decide there is not enough evidence of fault to justify investigating. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B)).

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How I considered this complaint

3. I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.I also considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.

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My assessment

4. I recognise Mrs X’s point that she feels she should not be charged care home fees by the Council for the period of time when Mr X was in hospital and not using his care home room. However, the care home provider was not to know that Mr X would not be returning and therefore could not give the room to someone else. Though Mr X was in hospital for four weeks, the room at the care home was still his and therefore chargeable under the terms of his care placement. I am therefore unlikely to find fault by the Council with respect to the invoice charges and so we will not investigate this complaint.

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Final decision

5. We will not investigate this complaint because we are unlikely to find fault by the Council in respect of the invoice charges.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman