The Ombudsman's final decision
Summary: We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint about the Care Provider wrongly accusing her of abusing her mother and reporting it to the Council. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Care Provider and we would not be able to achieve the outcome Ms X wants.
The complaint
Ms X complained the Care Provider wrongly accused her of abusing her mother, Mrs Y, and reported its concerns to the Council. She said the Council completed an investigation and unsubstantiated the Care Provider’s concerns. Ms X said it caused her distress and negatively affected her reputation. Ms X wants the Care Provider to apologise to her and provide her with a financial remedy for the injustice caused. She also wants the Care Provider to provide her with a refund of care charges.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
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 person 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, or we cannot achieve the outcome someone wants.
(Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended, section 34(B))
How I considered this complaint
I considered information provided by Ms X and the Care Provider.
I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint. This is because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Care Provider. The Care Provider like other care providers, has a duty of care to safeguard people who use its service from harm and to promote their wellbeing. We cannot be critical of the Care Provider’s actions even though the Council was unable to substantiate its concerns.
As there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Care Provider, we would not be able to achieve the outcome Ms X wants.
Final decision
We will not investigate Ms X’s complaint because there is insufficient evidence of fault by the Care Provider and we would not be able to achieve the outcome she wants.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman