VULNERABLE people using council care services in Lincolnshire could end up having to pay out an extra £1.8 million a year.

Lincolnshire County Council wants to boost income from adult social care by transforming how it charges people that use the service.

Plans include raising hourly rates, increasing the maximum amount a person has to pay per week from £126 to £250 and charging for day care and transport services.

It is estimated this could generate an extra £1.8 million, which the council says would be reinvested back into adult social care services.

The Conservative-run authority said it needs to develop a "fairer" pricing structure to cope with the introduction of personal budgets by the Government.

Under this scheme, older and disabled people are means-tested and receive funding to spend themselves.

But carers and campaigners warn personal budgets could cause more confusion.

Executive councillor for adult social care Graham Marsh said: "This is about providing a fairer, more equitable system where people who can afford to pay something will pay and those who can't won't.

"It will be more transparent and simpler for people to understand.

"We will still be looking to maximise peoples' incomes."

But Elaine Smith, of Ashby-de-la-Launde, whose mother, Lilian Smithson, 89, needs regular care, said families and older people will have the added stress of managing finances.

She said: "I have so many concerns. It's going to be the local authority that determines how much personal budget somebody can get, dependent on needs.

"They say people will get more choice, but they won't. People just want to know they have some sort of long-term commitment. They want the stability."

Barry Fippard, chairman of the Lincolnshire Association Of People With Disabilities, said people needed to have the option to spend their budget on a range of services.

The former Labour county councillor said: "Out of the £80 a person might have, they might be paying £50 to the county council and purchasing other services with the remainder.

"If the county council put its rates up, the person might not be able to use other services."