What counts as care home negligence?
Short answer
Care home negligence is a breach of the ordinary duty of care owed by a residential, nursing or domiciliary care provider to the standard a reasonably competent provider would meet — assessed against what the resident's needs required, not against a medical standard. Where that standard isn't met and it causes avoidable harm, a claim in negligence may succeed.
The Care Quality Commission's "fundamental standards" — in particular Regulation 12 (safe care and treatment) and Regulation 13 (safeguarding service users from abuse and improper treatment) under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 — describe the standard every registered provider is required to meet. A CQC inspection report, rating, or enforcement notice can be powerful supporting evidence in a civil claim, but the CQC itself has no power to award compensation, and a breach of the regulations doesn't automatically prove negligence — you still need to show a specific failure that caused specific harm.
What are the most common types of care home negligence?
Pressure ulcers (bed sores)
Residents with limited mobility need regular repositioning, pressure-relieving mattresses or cushions, and skin checks. A failure to carry out a proper pressure-area risk assessment on admission, or to follow the repositioning schedule it calls for, is one of the most frequently litigated forms of care home negligence — because it is also one of the most preventable.
Falls and inadequate risk assessment
Care homes are required to assess every resident's fall risk and put reasonable measures in place — bed rails, sensor mats, supervised mobilising, appropriate footwear. Claims commonly follow a fracture (particularly hip fracture) sustained in a fall that a proper risk assessment and care plan would have prevented or made significantly less likely.
Malnutrition and dehydration
Screening tools such as MUST (Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool) are meant to catch residents at risk of poor nutrition or fluid intake early. Failures include not weighing residents regularly, not acting on a falling weight trend, not adapting food or fluid consistency for a resident with swallowing difficulties (dysphagia), or simply not supporting a resident who needs help to eat and drink.
Medication errors
Missed doses, wrong doses, medication given to the wrong resident, or a failure to administer time-critical medication (such as Parkinson's medication, where even a short delay can cause serious harm) — all of these should be recorded and cross-checked on a Medication Administration Record (MAR) chart, and gaps or inconsistencies in that chart are frequently central to a claim.
Safeguarding failures and abuse
Local authorities have a statutory duty under section 42 of the Care Act 2014 to investigate safeguarding concerns about adults at risk. Claims can arise from physical, financial or psychological abuse by staff, failures to act on warning signs or previous complaints, and inadequate staff vetting, training or supervision that allowed abuse to happen or continue.
Failure to escalate a deteriorating resident
Care home staff are not expected to diagnose illness, but they are expected to recognise when a resident is deteriorating and to call a GP, 111, or an ambulance promptly. Claims often follow a delay in escalating symptoms of infection, sepsis, or a fall-related injury that a competent care worker should have flagged sooner.
Does it matter who arranged and pays for the care?
No — the underlying duty of care in negligence is the same whether a resident is self-funding, funded by the local authority, or funded by the NHS through continuing healthcare. But the funding route does open up additional legal avenues:
- Self-funders have a direct contractual claim against the care provider under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, which implies a term that services will be performed with reasonable care and skill — running alongside, not instead of, an ordinary negligence claim.
- Local-authority-arranged placements in a privately-run home are additionally covered by the Human Rights Act 1998, under section 73 of the Care Act 2014. This provision exists because of YL v Birmingham City Council [2007] UKHL 27, where the House of Lords held that a privately-run care home was not a "public authority" and so fell outside the Human Rights Act — Parliament reversed that gap for council-arranged placements, first through the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and now through the Care Act 2014.
- Where abuse or neglect is suspected, the local authority also has a statutory safeguarding duty under section 42 of the Care Act 2014 to make enquiries — separate from, and often running in parallel with, a civil claim.
Who do you actually claim against?
Almost always the registered care provider — the company or individual that operates the home or delivers the domiciliary care, since it's the provider that employs the staff and owes the duty of care directly. Where NHS-funded continuing healthcare was involved, or the failure was clinical in nature (a GP or district nurse attached to the home, for example), a claim may also involve NHS Resolution in the same way as any other clinical negligence claim.
What evidence does a care home negligence claim need?
- The full care plan and any risk assessments (pressure area, falls, nutrition/MUST) from admission onward.
- Daily care notes and handover records covering the relevant period.
- Medication Administration Record (MAR) charts.
- Any CQC inspection reports, safeguarding referrals, or internal incident reports.
- GP and hospital records documenting the injury and its treatment.
- Photographs of visible injuries such as pressure ulcers or bruising, where available.
- Independent expert evidence — typically from a care standards or tissue-viability expert, depending on the type of harm.
What is the time limit for a care home negligence claim?
Three years from the date of the negligent care, or from the date of knowledge — when you knew, or ought reasonably to have known, that poor care caused the harm — under the Limitation Act 1980. Where the resident lacked mental capacity throughout, the three-year clock does not start running until capacity is regained, if ever. Where the resident has since died, a claim brought on their behalf, or a separate claim by dependants under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976, runs from the date of death or date of knowledge.
How is a care home negligence claim funded?
As with other clinical and care negligence claims, these are almost always funded on a Conditional Fee Agreement — no win no fee. You pay nothing upfront, and nothing if the claim doesn't succeed.
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Frequently asked questions
Does it matter whether my relative was privately funding their place or funded by the council?
It affects which legal routes are available, not whether a claim can be brought. Everyone in care is owed the same basic duty of care in negligence. Self-funders also have a contractual right under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 to a service performed with reasonable care and skill. Where the local authority arranged the placement, section 73 of the Care Act 2014 additionally makes the privately-run home answerable under the Human Rights Act 1998 as if it were a public authority.
Does a poor CQC rating mean the home was negligent?
Not automatically. A CQC report or enforcement notice is strong supporting evidence of the standard actually being provided, but a civil claim still has to prove that a specific breach of duty caused specific harm to your relative. The CQC can prosecute and rate providers; it cannot award you compensation.
Can you claim for a pressure sore?
Yes, where it was avoidable. Pressure ulcers develop when a resident isn't repositioned regularly enough, isn't assessed as at-risk in the first place, or doesn't get the pressure-relieving equipment their care plan says they need. Most hospital-acquired and care-home-acquired pressure ulcers of grade 3 or above are treated by the NHS as avoidable harm unless the provider can show otherwise.
What if the resident has since died?
A claim can still be brought by the estate, and the family may separately be able to claim under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976 if the negligence caused or hastened death. Where a resident died in a care home in circumstances that raise wider concerns, a coroner's inquest may also examine the standard of care provided.
What is the time limit for a care home negligence claim?
Three years from the date of the injury, or from the date you first knew (or ought reasonably to have known) that poor care caused it — the same primary limitation period as any other personal injury or clinical negligence claim under the Limitation Act 1980.
Related guides
Sources & further reading
Primary statute, case law and regulator guidance referenced in this article.
- Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 — UK Legislation
- Care Act 2014, section 42 (safeguarding enquiries) and section 73 (human rights) — UK Legislation
- YL v Birmingham City Council [2007] UKHL 27 — Case law
- Care Quality Commission — fundamental standards — CQC
- Limitation Act 1980 — UK Legislation