Pause before you sign!
Retirement villages have become a popular lifestyle choice for Kiwis aged 55 plus.
Some villages offer five star resort-style accommodation designed for older people, while others promise a full range of services to support residents as they ‘age in place'.
Behind the glitz and glamour of retirement village living, concerns have been raised about the practices of some operators. One reader urges people to be careful before signing a village Occupation Right Agreement, which may limit their access to government funded home support services and require them to use the facility's own services for an inclusive (or extra) cost.
What are you signing?
An ORA is the legally binding agreement between a resident and their retirement village operator. It sets out the rights of residents who live in a retirement village. An agreement must be clear and easy to understand, and may include more than one document. To avoid ORA problems, people should seek advice from their own legal advisors about the content of any agreement when considering moving to a retirement village. Information about accessing government funded services is one topic that should be checked out before signing a contract.
Read the fine print
Retirement Villages Association (RVA) executive director John Collyns says it is the industry practice for people living in standalone villas or townhouses to source services from any provider they want, because they live independently in their own homes. But those shifting into a serviced apartment designed for residents with care and support needs should read the fine print in ORA agreements before they sign. Village operators may include a clause requiring residents to pay for personal care which might otherwise be available free from District Health Board funded providers for older people who meet assessment eligibility criteria. Services covered by this funding include cleaning and assistance with personal cares such as showering.
Shared spaces and security
Some village operators do not believe that external home care providers should be allowed into their serviced apartments for a number of reasons, says the RVA.
Typically, serviced apartments are not fully self-contained and do not include a full kitchen, laundry or storage for cleaning equipment. Residents have no need for these facilities in their apartments, as the minimum package for a serviced apartment resident includes regular housekeeping services (including linen changes) and the main meal of the day. An external agency would need to bring their own cleaning equipment and take any laundry off site.
Also, the living space in a serviced facility includes a resident's apartment, plus communal living and dining areas which are serviced by village staff. John Collyns says it would be inappropriate for external agencies to maintain these communal areas. Security is another factor behind villages' reluctance to permit the use of external home support services, says John. Serviced apartment residents seldom lock their doors, as they see the communal areas as an extension of their home, as do residents of rest homes whose rooms are left open while they are in other parts of a facility." Allowing various providers into the serviced apartment area puts all residents at risk from theft, and this has been many operators' experience in the past."
Integrated care
Some operators provide care and domestic services, with staff available to residents 24/7. These operators believe that providing seamless support to meet all of a resident's needs is at the heart of why someone would live in a serviced apartment. Instead of focusing on why external providers cannot deliver services to village residents, the RVA questions why most DHBs do not allow village operators to provide publicly funded care services to their own residents. It says outside providers have to travel to support a village resident, when the operator could service several residents more effectively at less cost.
Resolving disputes
If a village resident has signed a contract they now feel is unfair, and they believe their rights have been breached, they can challenge the provider over that section of their ORA agreement. The resident will also have complaints and disputes procedures set out in their agreement under the Retirement Villages Act 2003, which they can use if they believe they were not informed of their rights under the Code of Health and Disability Services Consumer Rights before signing their contract.
The Act was introduced to protect consumers, while enabling the development of retirement villages under a legal framework that is readily understandable by all. It includes the Code of Rights for people living or intending to live in a retirement village, and a Code of Practice for retirement village operators.
If a resident remains unhappy with the outcome of their retirement village's complaint process, they can complain to the Health and Disability Commissioner. It's important to be aware of these issues when choosing a retirement village, especially if you plan to live in a serviced apartment, or to shift to apartment or hospital accommodation at your village in the future. The key point is informed choice - check out village policies before you sign a contract!
Help on the web
The Health and Disability Commissioner
The Retirement Village Association of New Zealand