Wayside Nursing Home: Bromsgrove care home charges family for 28 days care after father's death

A care home charged a grieving family for 28 days of care - after their father's death. Wayside Nursing Home in New Road, Bromsgrove was asked to refund the man's family following a complaint that prompted an investigation in 2023.

Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman said the company, Wayside Care Ltd which runs the care home, overcharged the family despite the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)'s guidelines stating providers should only charge families for up to three days.

Following the investigation, the care home was advised to refund the family for the extra days charged and the company to review its contract to ensure it is in line with CMA guidance, as well as issuing an apology. However, despite agreeing to the recommendations, it has still failed to comply with any of them.

The Ombudsman said it has issued an Adverse Findings Notice against the provider which puts on record their failure to comply and its findings will be shared with the care regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) for further action.

Ms Amerdeep Somal, Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman said: "It is simply not good enough for providers to agree to comply with our recommendations and then fail to produce evidence they have done so. We check to confirm compliance when we find fault.

“I am particularly disappointed that this care provider agreed to refund this family but has then said it will seek to recoup this cost by enforcing late fees it had previously waived. I am concerned this provider’s contemptible attitude, both to my office and the family, does not demonstrate a mature and customer-focused approach to improving its services for residents.”