Elderly man left owing almost £5,000 to council after financial assessment delays

An investigation by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has found that an elderly man was left owing nearly £5,000 to Kingston Council after it wrongly paid for his live-in carer for six months.

Outlining the background to the case, the Ombudsman said Mrs Z, on behalf of her father Mr X, complained that the council’s needs assessment failed to identify all his eligible needs and it delayed in completing a financial assessment, which resulted in Mr X spending money “without knowing he was not entitled to it”.

Mr X lives with his wife, who receives separate direct payments towards her care.

As Mr and Mrs X’s savings were reducing, a request was made to Kingston Council for assistance.

In April 2023, the council assessed Mr X as needing three daily visits to help with personal care and the administration of medication. A financial assessment form was submitted for consideration by the council’s finance team.

In June, the council set up a pre-payment account and began paying in £189 per week. Mrs Z said she began using this money towards the cost of the live-in carer.

In October, the council sent a letter saying Mr X was not eligible for the £189 payment. The council also sent an invoice requesting repayment of the £4,860 already paid into the direct payment account.

Mrs Z immediately contacted the council saying it had taken over six months to complete the financial assessment and notify them there was no entitlement, the report noted.

Following investigation, the council accepted it did not complete the assessment within the expected 10-day timescale.

The Ombudsman said: “We consider the financial assessment should be completed before the care and support plan issued to enable service users to make informed decisions.

“The council says that it provided information about charging in this case though I note it cannot evidence it gave any information about charging on the day it completed the needs assessment.”

To remedy the injustice caused, the Ombudsman recommended the council to contact Mrs Z to discuss an “affordable repayment schedule” for the £4,860 it wrongly paid.

The watchdog revealed that the council had already offered a payment of £500 to the family for the distress they were caused and said it had improved its procedures.

A Kingston Council spokesperson said: "The council acknowledges it was delayed in completing the financial assessment process. A formal apology, as well as a financial remedy, has been issued to the family due to the distress caused. The council has adapted its processes to ensure that this situation does not occur again in the future."

Littie Winson