Call for change in law after carers rob Bridlington pensioner of life savings
'Private Assistants' currently need no legal checks before they care for someone.
A woman, whose grandad was robbed of his lifesavings in Bridlington by his carers, is calling for a change in the law.
The pair from Scarborough were prosecuted and jailed earlier this year, after stealing £200,000 from their victim, who was in his mid-nineties and has since died.
As it stands, anyone can be a 'Private Assistant', without the protection of an agency or any checks.
Anna Woodhouse has since started a petition for the government to close that loophole.
She said:
"I had concerns from day one about my grandpa's carers, from the moment her called me, in April 2018, to say he was dropping the agency carers and going private with them. I could hear them coaching him, telling him what to say, and it didn't feel right. Unfortunately, after my dad and nanna passed away, my grandpa was really lonely and vulnerable. Me and my brother were his only family members, besides his sister, who is of course also very elderly and suffers from dementia.
We grew up in Bridlington, but neither of us live locally any more, which left my grandpa isolated and vulnerable in spite of our best efforts to support him. So these two moved in on him I believe, with the intention from the outset of financially abusing him. I visited as regularly as I could, and used to enjoy spending time with him, reminiscing and watching films, but when lockdown struck in 2020, this had stop. These circumstances, in which nobody could visit, save these "carers", played into their hands by making him even more isolated. I remember calling him on the phone, and him not being able to hear me or recognise me at all, after they had changed his telephone and he no longer knew how to operate it - sometimes he even thought I was her, and I would come off the phone in tears because I was so worried about him. I also had nightmares about it - fearing something was wrong.
Unfortunately, because they had been so effective in manipulating him, when we had tried to talk to him about our concerns, he wouldn't hear a bad word against them, and would become distressed about any proposed changes to his care. I also sought advice from Age Uk, who told me to keep records of all my concerns, which later proved useful in court.
It wasn't until August 2020, when I found out that my worst fears had been realised, that I actually had any solid proof that anything was wrong. At this point, I was informed that not only had my grandpa's account been emptied of his life savings, to the tune of nearly £200,000, but they had also run up £10,000 of credit card debt in his name. From that moment on, we have been dealing with the fallout of what this husband and wife couple did to my poor grandpa. He was, of course, absolutely heartbroken to learn that the people he had trusted and relied upon had robbed him of everything. He never recovered from the shock, and sadly, passed away within three months of finding out what they had done.
As for us, we had the trial to contend with, as these criminals did not accept responsibility for their actions and entered a not guilty plea. It was a horrible ordeal, especially giving evidence and having to be cross examined and accused of not caring by the defence barristers. However, it was important for us to get justice for him. One of things that struck me, when we found out what had happened, was, how is this still happening? I'd heard and read of stories like this in the past, and I couldn't believe that it's still going on. What is more frightening, is that if they hadn't have taken everything, its quite likely they would have got away with it, because it was only when the account was completely empty, that the bank alerted us and the police.
There is a gap in the legislation, which means that private carers (in law, these are termed 'Personal Assistants') do not need to be registered or go through any checks. Because of this, and because they were convicted of theft (due to a legal technicality which saw the original charge of fraud by abuse of position changed when it came to trial), it means that they could come out of prison and potentially work with vulnerable older people again - because they are not automatically barred by the Disclosure and Barring Service.
I feel really strongly that we should be doing more to protect our vulnerable older people, which is why I am now calling for a change in the law, to make sure that anyone caring for a vulnerable older person, including personal assistants, needs to be checked and registered. This is the only part of the care system that is not regulated and it seems extraordinary to me in light of these stories of financial abuse that this remains the case. I'm hoping people will support this cause by signing and sharing the petition, because this really is everyone's problem. We are all going to get old one day, or have older loved ones!
What has been really encouraging, and has given me strength through this whole ordeal, was the amazing kindness of other people in Bridlington who looked out for my grandpa, helped to raise the alarm, and supported him and us through those dark days after he found out he'd been robbed of everything for which he worked all his life. There are lots of elderly people in Bridlington, and lots of incredible people who care for them. People who commit these crimes should be kept put of the profession, and legislation is one crucial way we can help to achieve this important goal."
The Department for Health and Social Care has sent us a statement:
• Personal assistants (PA’s) have a duty of care to the people they work for, as well as the general public. If a PA’s actions were deemed to be negligent or deliberate, they could be held accountable and ultimately prosecuted under criminal law.
• CCGs (Clinical Commissioning Groups) and LAs (Local Authorities)As need to ensure that these tasks are being carried out correctly.
• When agreeing a personal budget or personal health budget it is good practice to ensure DBS checks are completed. To support the personal budget holder in applying for a DBS check many LA’s commission an independent provider, such as a user led organisation, who support the individual in all aspects of managing their care. The local authority may also require personal budget holders using Direct Payments to specify whom they are employing to the local authority.