The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Mr B’s late complaint about the Council’s refusal to reimburse him money he paid for his late father’s care. This is because Mr B could have come to us at the time he was paying for his father’s care if he believed he should not have had to pay. There is no good reason to exercise our discretion to investigate this late complaint now.
The complaint
Mr B complained he paid for his late father’s care for five years prior to his death in 2020. Mr B says the Council arranged the care and charged him £1500 a month and wants the Council to reimburse him the money he paid.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by the complainant.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr B says he paid £1500 a month for five years prior to his late father’s death in 2020 and says he complained to the Council in 2015. He could have come to us in 2015 if he was concerned the Council was charging him and he was paying for care he should not have paid.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr B’s complaint because he could have come to us sooner if he was concerned about being charged for his late father’s care. There is no good reason to exercise discretion to investigate this complaint now.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman