Contracts

Commissioning Contracts and Fee Disputes

Commissioners of care will carry out contract monitoring visits of services to ensure providers are meeting the terms of their contract. These visits may take place as a matter of course, or because they have been prompted by a safeguarding alert or a regulator visit.

Sometimes these visits are used to try and reduce fees or result in commissioners seeking to cancel the contract based on an alleged breach of contract. Sometimes they will try and remove residents.

Often the actions of the commissioner can influence those of the regulator, and vice-versa.

Ridouts can help you by:

  • challenging contract monitoring findings
  • challenging cancellation of contracts
  • challenging the removal of service users by helping residents to secure their own legal representation in conjunction with providers
  • challenging commissioner attempts to reduce fees
  • reviewing contracts to analyse whether a fee increase is payable

Outcomes achieved include:

  • Initiation of court proceedings for failure to pay fees leading to settlement outside of court
  • Successful challenge to cancellations/suspension of commissioning contracts
  • Re-negotiated fee rates

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Case Study

Our Client was faced with a refusal to increase learning disability fees after 10 years of service provision. Given changes in the economy an increase was required in order for the service to continue to meet the needs of vulnerable service users. The Commissioning Authority did not accept the Provider’s summary of the true cost of care. We deployed an innovative argument on “implied term” and secured a significant increase.

The Local Authority continued to refuse to contemplate fee increases. We used the Dispute Resolution clause to argue that price increases were a contract dispute. The local authority settled with us, implementing significant increases across the board.

We advise Clients how to negotiate and draft contracts with a procedure to enhance fees to meet cost increases and the price of unforeseeable changes in the law.

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Ridouts is a team of specialist health and social care lawyers, providing dedicated legal advice for care homes, GP practices, children’s homes, dental practices, domiciliary and home care agencies, supported and independent living services and both private and NHS hospitals.

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