CARE HOME residents are being duped into signing unfair and unclear contracts which can charge fees for a month after their deaths, a new investigation has found.
Consumer rights group Which? said care homes could be breaking the law by failing to inform residents and their families about dodgy clauses, such as a right to terminate a contract with just 24 hours’ notice for undefined “detrimental behaviour.”
In one case reported to the consumer watchdog, a manager placed a resident with dementia on round-the-clock one-to-one care at £15 per hour, causing their monthly bills to skyrocket from £4,000 to more than £15,000. The family were told that they had signed an agreement that this could be done.
Only a publicly run, properly funded system that puts dignity before profit can end decades of market failure, says PAUL DONOVAN
With more people dying each year and many spending their final days in institutions, researchers argue that wider access to palliative care could offer a more humane and cost-effective alternative, write ROX MIDDLETON, LIAM SHAW and MIRIAM GAUNTLETT