Can A Local County Council Make Payments On My Behalf?

[koiman]

Our mother is in a nursing home, she was 'granted' a slightly larger room than normal and for this 'enhanced room' my sister and I were asked if we (not mother) would agree to pay an extra £30 per week.
We agreed, but after a period of payment we challenged the charge as unfair as the other rooms although smaller had better facilities and views. The charge was dropped. However the back payments still due were claimed by the home from the local county council, now they (the council) are chasing us for the payment and threatening court action to retrieve the £500 'owed' by us.
Given that my sister and I owed the money not my mother, does the County Council have the right to pay out the money in the first place? I know they can pay outstanding care costs owed by the actual client but does this count for the same? They did not even have the good grace to tell us they been asked for it or indeed that they had paid it, they just issued an invoice.

[Hymie]

In law, you are not responsible for your mother’s debts/care costs.

However if you have agreed to pay (for something), then that agreement can be enforced in law.

I understand that a number of local councils play the ‘caring for your mother’ card, in obtaining agreement from offspring to pay for things that the local council should be paying for.

If your mother is in receipt of NHS continuing health care – then all costs of her care are the responsibility of your local HNS trust.

[Hymie]

NHS

[bednobs]

why were there back payments? are you saying you agreed to pay for the enhanced room and then didn't?

[koiman]

But it's our debt, what right have they to settle it as a council ?

[bednobs]

i would imagine that like lots of bigger organisations, they sent an invoice, and it wa automatically paid by the council, who then discovered they'd paid for something you agreed to pay for

[koiman]

Bed nobs, when we challenged the cost we stopped paying it to force the issue as they just kept putting us off.
I'm trying to understand why the council feels it can pay my debts.

[koiman]

And even if they have any right to pay it.

[bednobs]

well i answeres that up there i think. Perhaps the care home were threatening to evict your mum if their bill wasn't paid?
if you acknowledge you owe it, then it doesn't (practically) make a difference who you pay it to, does it?

[koiman]

Yes Bednobs it does, we had stopped paying because we disagreed the cost, they dropped the charge and the dispute remained about the back payments. Effectively the council have disarmed us by making the payment as the home now has no incentive to settle the dispute.

[bednobs]

sorry i seem to be (not deliberately) misunderstanding something
1) you agreed to pay the enhanced rate
2) you paid the weekly rate until you realised you were paying for something you weren't really gtting
3) you challenged it and it was dropped
4) omewhere there are about 4 months of payments outstanding - how? did you stop paying before they agreed to stop charging you? if so, surely you still owe that money - why would you need to be armed?

[koiman]

Because we always felt it was unfair, if the home wanted to argue in court then fine but....my question is, did the council have the right to pay it in the first place?

[bednobs]

as i said, they probably either paid it to keep her there, or paid by mistake and then realised you owed it.
you are happy for the home to take you to court but not the council? If you always felt it was unfair, you shouldn't hVae agreed to pay it. I think you are on a hiding to nothing with the legal thing, sorry

[fiction-factory]

I agree with bednobs