The owners of a homecare business have been ordered to pay £44,003 at Portsmouth Magistrates’ Court, after they were found to be operating illegally. 

The directors of Golden Years Caring at Home Ltd, based in Cosham, Portsmouth, were fined £34,833 in court on Wednesday 10 June. The directors were also ordered to pay a £170 victim surcharge and £9,000 costs as a result of the prosecution brought by the Care Quality Commission. 

The court heard that Golden Years Caring at Home operated without appropriate registration as all domiciliary care agencies must be registered with the CQC. Registration means services can be monitored and inspected to ensure safety for people who use them.  

Golden Years Caring at Home had been providing personal care to people living in their own homes in the community since 2 March 2015. CQC initially received information from Portsmouth City Council about this in September 2017. 

CQC contacted Golden Years Caring at Home about not being registered from October 2017 to September 2019. The directors made several failed attempts to register with CQC, however, they did not meet the standards required so a decision was made to refuse their registration.  

The company entered a guilty plea prior to the hearing, admitting it had carried out regulated activity without the required registration, breaching section 10 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Joyce Frederick, CQC’s Deputy Chief Inspector of Registration, said: 

"Providers of personal care services deal with people whose circumstances make them vulnerable and who may not be able to report abuse or poor care. Where we find providers operating outside of the law, we do not hesitate to act to protect people.

The law requires care agencies to register with the Care Quality Commission to protect people needing care in their own homes. It ensures all care providers are monitored and inspected, meaning safe care and treatment is maintained.

This is one of the largest fines handed out to an unregistered provider. I would hope the size of this fine would send a very clear message to anyone thinking of operating a service without registering with the Care Quality Commission."

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