Nursing Home Guidelines
The Nursing Home Guidelines set out the obligations and responsibilities that providers must adhere to under consumer protection law and are aimed at providing greater transparency, clarity and certainty for consumers.
The guidelines were updated in 2023 as a result of the enactment of the Consumer Rights Act 2022 which strengthened consumer protection law in Ireland to bring about a number of positive changes for consumers, including the law relating to unfair terms in contracts between traders and consumers.
Some of the most important changes to the updated guidelines include information concerning:
- Minimum 30-day notice periods for increases in care home fees.
- Black-listed contract terms which are always unfair.
- Increased transparency considerations.
- Consumer information and cancellation rights, such as the right to pre-contractual information on the main features of the care service.
- Consumer rights when the service is not in conformity with the contract, such as the right to withhold payment.
These guidelines have been published under Section 90 of the Consumer Protection Act 2007, meaning that in any proceedings before a court, these guidelines are admissible in evidence and, if any provision of the guidelines is relevant to a question arising in those proceedings, the provision may be taken into account in determining that question.
Download a printable PDF of these guidelines.
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