A grieving family have hired lawyers after one of the UK’s largest care home operators withheld thousands of pounds in unused fees after their loved one died.
Clara Willetts, 95, died on 19 June in the £186-a-day Netherton Green care home in Dudley run by Advinia. The firm failed to return more than £7,000 after her death despite repeated demands and promises to do so. The money is needed to pay for her funeral.
Under its terms and conditions, the firm promises to repay unused fees within 28 days after the death of a resident. This week the money had still not been repaid, almost 100 days later.
Advinia made more than £4m in profit in the financial year to April 2022 from its 36 care homes across England and Scotland. It has a £54m debt to NatWest bank, according to accounts for that year, and £21m in debts falling due within a year.
Margaret and Philip Rayner, Clara Willetts’ niece and great-nephew and executor of her will, said in a complaint to the firm this month: “It’s difficult enough coping with the loss of a loved one without the extra stress of chasing a refund for something which was paid on 2 February.”
Before the Covid pandemic, the Competitions and Markets Authority, warned care homes in England against charging residents for more than three days after their deaths and said refunds should be timely and that “concerns are likely to arise if terms make provision for refunds beyond 28 days”.
Margaret Rayner, 66, told the Guardian she was concerned that other families might be facing the same struggle.
“It has been upsetting,” she said. “Aunty was very careful with her money and in the back of my mind is her saying ‘you need to get my money back’. Advinia needs to be clear about why they can’t pay the money back.”
Advinia advertises its services under the slogan “financially viable safe quality care”. In 2020 it said it was working towards deploying robots with artificial intelligence to reduce loneliness among residents.
In 2019, the Guardian reported that the CQC was concerned about the group’s cashflow and financial management, as well as its refusal to submit to an independent audit of its finances.
The firm said this week: “Advinia’s audited accounts confirm that there are no compliance issues with the regulator or the group’s finances.”
It told the Guardian: “Any refund goes through a detailed process of client care hours provided. Some clients require additional care hours in the terminal phases and details need to be collected properly to account for any debt due.”
More than a month ago, the firm told Rayner the refund would be “with you in next week’s payments run”, email correspondence shows.
After the Guardian asked Advinia about the missing money this week, it said: “The investigation of the client funds has been completed and a refund organised.”
The Care Quality Commission last inspected Netherton Green in September and rated it as “requires improvement”. The watchdog said: “The provider had failed to have systems in place to adequately prevent and control infection. The provider did not always safely manage medicines.”
It said: “The service was not always safe … the service was not always effective … the service was not always well led.”