Most families call two or three agencies, get quoted an hourly rate by each, and pick one. The rate is the easiest thing to compare and the least useful.
These are the questions worth asking instead. The answers vary more between agencies than the price does.
Are your caregivers employees or contractors?
Start here, because the answer decides who carries the risk.
If caregivers are employees of the agency, the agency handles payroll, taxes, workers’ compensation and liability insurance. If a caregiver hurts their back helping your mother out of the bath, that’s the agency’s responsibility.
If they’re contractors, or if you hire privately, those obligations can land on your family. Some agencies present themselves as a referral service without making that distinction obvious, so ask directly.
Ours are our own employees. Not contractors.
What happens when my caregiver is sick?
This one catches families out after they’ve signed.
Ask what the agency actually does when the regular caregiver calls in sick, takes a vacation, or quits. Some send a replacement the same day. Some tell you they’ll see what they can do, which in practice means you’re covering it yourself.
It’s the single most common reason families leave a private arrangement, and it’s worth knowing the answer before you need it rather than after.
Who has been checked, and how?
Background checks, reference checks, and what the agency actually verifies. This is standard at a good agency and it should be a straightforward answer.
Follow it with: what training do caregivers get, and is any of it specific to dementia? Caring for someone with memory loss is a different skill, and plenty of agencies don’t distinguish.
How do you match a caregiver to my parent?
Listen for whether the answer is about the person or about the schedule.
Matching on availability alone is how families end up with someone perfectly competent who your father simply doesn’t want in the house. Ask what they consider, and ask what happens if the fit isn’t right.
What happens if it isn’t working?
Ask directly: can I change caregivers, how quickly, and does it cost anything?
A good agency will change the caregiver without making it awkward. If that answer sounds reluctant, believe it, because it’s the answer you’ll get when you actually need it.
Who is watching the care plan?
Ask who reviews the plan as needs change, and how often someone other than the caregiver looks at the situation.
With a private hire, whoever is in the house is the whole system. With an agency there should be someone else keeping track. Ask who that is.
Is there a minimum, and what am I committing to?
Minimum hours per visit or per week, notice period, and whether you’re locked into anything.
Hours should be able to go up and down as needs change. A recovery after a hospital stay usually means starting heavier and reducing, and an agency should be comfortable with that.
What does the quote actually include?
Ask whether the rate changes for weekends, holidays or overnight cover, and whether there’s a separate charge for the assessment or for setting up.
You want one clear number for the care you’re actually considering, not a starting rate that moves.
Two questions for yourself
Did they ask about your parent, or only about the schedule and the budget? And did anyone say you might not need as much as you think?
An agency willing to tell you that is usually the one worth working with.
How Golden Years helps
Golden Years Home Care has provided non-medical in-home care across California since 1996. We’re family owned, and our caregivers are our own employees, screened and background checked.
We provide companion care, personal care, respite care, dementia care, Alzheimer’s care at home and 24 hour home care. Care starts with a free in-home assessment, and we’ll give you straight answers to every question above.
Licensed Home Care Organization #344700040.
