The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about care fees for Mr X’s father. The complaint is late and there are no good reasons to exercise discretion.
The complaint
Mr X complained about his late father’s, (Mr Y’s), care charges. He says the Council failed to notify him of care charges between May and November 2022, which resulted in a build-up of debt.
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 and the Council.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
Mr X’s complaint is about charges for Mr Y’s care.
Mr X complained to the Council in December 2022; this demonstrates Mr X was aware of his concerns about the charges at this point. The Council responded at stage one of its complaints process, in December 2022. However, Mr X did not escalate his complaint to stage 2 until November 2023.
It was reasonable to expect Mr X to have escalated his complaint to the Council sooner. I cannot see any good reasons for why Mr X could not have done so.
Mr X did not complain to us until March 2024, despite being aware of his concerns since November/December 2022. I see no good reason to consider the late complaint.
Final decision
We will not investigate Mr X’s late complaint because there is not a good reason for the delay in him bringing the matter to the Ombudsman.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman