FOI002981 FOI Adults Social Care

This concerns cases where RBWM holds a legal charge against a residential property as security for adult social care costs - including deferred payment agreements under sections 34-35 of the Care Act 2014 and the Care and Support (Deferred Payment) Regulations 2014, and any historical charges secured under section 22 of the Health and Social Services and Social Security Adjudications Act 1983. Specifically, the period between the death of the cared-for person and (a) issue of a final account to the estate and (b) formal discharge of the charge.

For financial years 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/25 and 2025/26, please provide:

1. The number of properties against which RBWM held such a charge at the start of each year.

2. The number of cases in which the cared-for person died during each year.

3. For the cases in (2), measured from the date RBWM was notified of the death:
a) mean and median working days taken to issue a final account to the estate or its representatives;
b) mean and median working days taken to formally discharge the charge;
c) the longest single time taken in each of (a) and (b).

4. Whether RBWM charges interest, fees or any other accruing sum on the outstanding balance between death and discharge of the charge, and if so at what rate and under what authority.

5. Any internal target, service level or published timescale for either (a) issuing a final account or (b) releasing the charge following notification of death, and the proportion of cases meeting it in each year.

6. The number of formal complaints (Stage 1, Stage 2, and to the LGSCO) received in each year relating to delays in either the final account or release of charge.

7. As at the date of your response, the number of cases currently open in which RBWM has been notified of a death but has not yet (a) issued a final account or (b) released the charge, together with the age in months of each open case (anonymised).

8. The FTE staff within the team(s) responsible for these matters in each year.

9. The total value of interest, fees or other sums accrued on outstanding balances during post-death delay periods across the four years.

If any part is likely to exceed the section 12 cost limit, please contact me to discuss narrowing the scope rather than refusing in full. Spreadsheet format preferred for the numeric data.