Vulnerable adults receiving help eating and washing could be paying hundreds of pounds more than someone living just two miles away in a “postcode lottery of care”.
Figures have revealed people living in Angus and Fife pay no fee for either elderly day care or adult day care, but Dundee City Council charges up to £34.70 per day and up to £54.80 per half-day for the same services.
That means someone living in Broughty Ferry could spend hundreds of pounds a week on care while someone residing a little east in Monifieth only has to fork out a small meal cost.
A spokesman for Age Scotland called on the Scottish Government to work with local authorities to end such discrepancies and said all care should be “free at the point of use”.
He added: “Councils face hard financial choices. However, steeply increasing charges across multiple services could have the effect of deterring the older people who need them the most.
“These services play a vital role in enabling many in later life to remain independent in their community, so a reduction in uptake is likely to result over time in increased hospital and residential care admissions at greater cost to the public purse.”
Scottish Labour’s Jackie Baillie MSP said: “Increasingly, Scots are facing a postcode lottery of care. It simply is unacceptable that if you live in Falkirk you could be paying substantially more for the same sort of care than if you live in Fife.”
A Scottish Government spokes-person said: “We are currently working with COSLA and user representatives to ensure fair, consistent and transparent charging policies for all community care services.”
A spokesman for Dundee City Council said: “People may be required to contribute to some of the costs of the services they get. However, the services people receive are based on needs and not ability to pay.
“Anyone aged 65 or over is not charged for services to meet personal care needs that they have been assessed as requiring. Nursing care is also free for people living in care homes.”
A spokesman for Perth and Kinross Council said the local authority’s care charges are means tested, with the average weekly client charge for April 9 2012 to January 13 2013 was £31.06.
An Angus Council spokeswoman said: “Angus Council has been determined to make their charging policy as fair as possible despite budgetary constraints, being aware of the needs of vulnerable service users, and will continue to do so.”
Fife Council were unable to respond to questions from The Courier about how their care costs were decided.