Taxpayers' £47,000 care bill for pensioner who was dead

Published on Wednesday 5 May 2010 23:17

A COUNCIL is trying to retrieve £47,000 that it continued to pay a care home to look after an OAP for more than two years after she died.

The home involved closed earlier this year when the operating company running it was dissolved.

Police have launched an investigation and Stirling Council is in talks with representatives of the firm's parent company in a bid to get the money back.

The apparent mix-up sparked an angry response from MSPs yesterday.

Scottish Conservative Party health spokeswoman Mary Scanlon MSP said: "It is totally outrageous.

"And if Stirling Council has documentation which says this person was still alive, then serious questions have to be asked by the police."

Council officials were forced to admit the overpayment to the council's governance and audit committee.

In a report headed "Overpayment of Residential Care Fees to Private Care Home", the authority's corporate governance manager, Joe Rennie, said that the situation had arisen "at least in part" due to the "continued" submission to the council of signed documentation from the company that owned the care home.

Mr Rennie said this indicated the resident was still under the care of the home, although she had in fact died on 20 December, 2007.

Mr Rennie said: "In March (2010], the contracts team within the social care service sought advice from Internal Audit regarding an alleged overcharging of some 47,000 for residential care home fees by a private care home for a former resident.

"Further detailed investigation by the contracts team indicated that the resident had, in fact, died.

"In addition, the company that owned the care home was 'dissolved' on 19 February, 2010.

"With the advice and support of Internal Audit and Legal Services, Social Care Service reported the matter to Central Scotland Police on 8 March, 2010 and the council issued a letter and invoice for reimbursement of the overpayment on the same day to the ultimate parent company.

"Dialogue is ongoing between Social Care Service and the parent company, pursuant to a verbal offer from a party representing the company to reimburse the council in full for the overpayment that had taken place.

"However, the repayment has not yet been received and the Service continues to liaise with the relevant party in that regard."

Neither the firm nor the home, which is understood to be in Coatbridge, Lanarkshire, has been named.

The dead woman's identity has also been kept secret.

A spokesman for Stirling Council said he could not give further details for legal reasons.

A spokesman for Central Scotland Police said the matter had been referred on to Strathclyde Police because of the location of the care home involved.

Strathclyde Police were unable to respond in relation to the case.