A survey of the repression of fraud, published this Monday, June 12, underlines that 40% of the residences services seniors that it controlled did not inform consumers correctly.
Unclear, even misleading information on services and prices… Of the 256 senior service residences, private or associative, which were scrutinized by the repression of fraud (DGCCRF) between 2021 and 2022, 40% “n’ did not properly inform consumers about the services offered”.
Alternatives to a private home for autonomous elderly people who wish to live in a more secure environment, these residences offer various services, such as collective services aimed at facilitating daily life (concierge, catering, video surveillance) and personal services, such as home cleaning.
Promised benefits that do not exist
Some establishments presented themselves as “medicalized”, highlighting “wrongly” the “presence of health professionals”. Others mentioned services that did not really exist, such as the presence of a 24-hour security guard or the existence of a gym.
In addition, information on prices “is sometimes not transparent and fair”: it can be “presented after deducting the tax benefit or social assistance”. A “vast majority” of establishments have “spontaneously returned to compliance”, following the checks, however specifies the repression of fraud.
It issued 71 warnings and 32 compliance injunctions (for misleading commercial practices, unfair terms, lack of mandatory information in the estimate). She also issued a criminal report for failure to comply with a compliance injunction regarding misleading allegations. In the event of difficulty encountered with a seniors’ service residence, the DGCCRF recommends that the customers concerned file a report on the SignalConso public site (www.signal.conso.gouv.fr). It specifies that it is also possible to refer to a consumer mediator.