Home Instead - Northbrook, IL

Pros

• Peggy delivered five-star accompaniment to and from Condell Hospital and coordinated post-surgery transport.
• Peggy also accompanied the client home after surgery.
• Home Instead staff consistently go out of their way to make clients feel comfortable and supported.
• The agency excels at matching caregivers to clients, leading to highly positive experiences.
• Ryan was fantastic and kept everything in order.
• Nikki and America provided excellent care for the client's mother.
• The team's professionalism and attention to detail give families peace of mind.
• The Home Instead office is responsive and keeps families updated; the caregivers are outstanding.
• The organization is described as terrific, with dedicated caregivers and knowledgeable management.
• Care coordination and intake processes are ultra professional and well organized.
• Caregivers are loving, compassionate, and attentive to clients' needs.

Cons

• The intake team seemed wonderful but the care and services did not meet expectations.
• There were ongoing billing issues, including charges for cancelled services and promised refunds not being processed.
• 24-hour care was described as not meeting expectations, with staff allegedly being relentless with concerns and complaints instead of troubleshooting and support.
• There was a claim of dishonesty and taking advantage of elderly people, with unrefunded charges and disputed invoices.
• It was stated that for total care this is not the right company to rely on.

Review

Across a range of experiences, families connected with Home Instead paint a picture of a service that can be incredibly strong in both caregiver quality and office responsiveness, while also showing that administration and billing can complicate otherwise positive care moments.

One standout story centers on Peggy, who went above and beyond on a recent Monday (9/15) by accompanying a client to Condell Hospital and back, despite the delays that inevitably come with surgery. Peggy not only kept the client company during the long wait, she also coordinated Mercury transport after the operation and accompanied them home. This single episode captures a recurring theme: when the team is at its best, staff take ownership of logistics, comfort, and safety in the moment, turning what could be a stressful process into something smoother and more reassuring for both the client and their family.

Over the course of nearly two months, the feedback on Home Instead's services has been overwhelmingly positive. Families describe caregivers as kind, caring, loving, and respectful of the client's preferences and boundaries. The staff's calm, patient approach consistently helps clients feel cared for in their own homes. More than just the individuals who visit, families repeatedly note that Home Instead goes out of its way to make life easier - handling numerous calls, running small favors, and staying engaged enough to anticipate needs. The impression across reviews is that the company's people and processes work well together to create a supportive home environment.

Several accounts highlight how well the organization matches caregivers to clients and how the leadership supports both sides of the relationship. Clients praise caregivers such as Ryan for keeping care plans in order, while others commend Nikki, America, Doreen, and Michelle for their attentiveness and reliability. The attention to detail - ensuring care needs are organized, schedules coordinated, and the overall operation running smoothly - gives families peace of mind. The sense conveyed is that the team isn't just delivering visits; they're delivering structured, dependable support that reduces the stress on caregivers and family members alike.

In urgent, time-constrained situations, families have also found Home Instead responsive and resourceful. One account describes arriving home after ER visits, with care arranged within minutes and an intake that moved quickly to on-the-ground support. Alex, in particular, is described as exceptionally kind and helpful during the process, with paperwork completed and care underway in short order. For a family dealing with a stubborn, independent 95-year-old mother, this blend of practical readiness and personal tact is especially meaningful, providing reassurance that help can arrive fast and be managed thoughtfully.

Yet the reviews are not uniformly glowing. A number of families report that, despite a wonderful intake experience - needs assessment, tours, and familiarization meetings - the actual care and services did not meet expectations. They describe persistent staffing issues and frequent, sometimes burdensome phone calls from staff like Ryan and Alexandra that focused on concerns and problems rather than productive troubleshooting. In one case, a family concluded that 24-hour care was not the right fit for them, signaling that the company's offerings may not align with every family's needs. This perspective emphasizes that even with a capable intake process, ongoing service quality can vary depending on the specific circumstances and staffing at any given time.

Financial and administrative experiences added a layer of frustration for some families. There are strong concerns about honesty and transparency in billing, with one family detailing cancellation timelines (including a Labor Day weekend cancellation) and alleging charges despite clear evidence of cancellation communications. The family claims to have been promised refunds that did not materialize, along with additional charges for services not rendered. They describe repeated attempts to halt charges and to obtain refunds, but say those refunds were never issued. These experiences underscore how, even when care itself can be compassionate and professional, financial interactions must be handled with scrupulous accuracy and clear communication to preserve trust.

There was also a glimpse of smoother administrative dynamics in other reviews, where the scheduling team and frontline staff worked rapidly to accommodate changes or cancellations when life events demanded flexibility. One account notes a highly responsive Home Instead office, with regular updates and a sense of reliability from the administrative side, even when actual caregiver visits did not proceed as planned. In these stories, the administration and the caregivers operate as a coherent unit, delivering care and communication that minimizes disruption to the family.

Taken together, the collective feedback paints a nuanced portrait of Home Instead. The organization shines in moments of direct, compassionate caregiving - caregivers who are patient, attentive, and well-matched to the client's needs; a front office that responds with urgency and professionalism; and a strong emphasis on planning to prevent "no surprises" in the caregiving journey. At the same time, the experiences remind us that administration and billing practices can significantly color the overall impression. When careful, transparent handling of cancellations, refunds, and pricing aligns with the high standard of care delivered by the caregivers, families feel truly supported. When those administrative processes falter, even excellent caregiving cannot fully compensate for the resulting frustration and mistrust.

Overall, many families would readily recommend Home Instead for reliable, compassionate in-home care, praising the quality of caregivers, the organization's ability to match staff to clients, and the responsive support from the office. Others advise prospective clients to review cancellation and billing policies carefully, to seek written confirmations of pricing and refunds, and to maintain proactive, documented communication to avoid disputes. The common thread is clear: Home Instead has a strong core of dedicated caregivers and a capable office team, but like any service that combines care delivery with complex administrative work, consistent performance hinges on aligning people, processes, and pricing across every interaction.

Restaurants

• Chipotle Mexican Grill (0.2 miles)
• Charlie Beinlich's (0.8 miles)
• Ravinia Festival (1.6 miles)
• P.F. Chang's China Bistro (1.9 miles)
• Piero's Pizza (1.9 miles)
• Chick-Fil-A (2.4 miles)
• McDonald's (2.6 miles)

Places of Worship

• Congregation Solel (1.7 miles)
• North Shore Congregation Israel (1.8 miles)
• Baha'i House of Worship (7 miles)

Pharmacies

• CVS Pharmacy (1.8 miles)
• Walgreens (1.9 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (2.1 miles)
• Walgreens (3.5 miles)
• Walgreens (3.6 miles)
• Walgreens (3.7 miles)
• Walgreens (4 miles)

Parks

• West Ridge Center (2.2 miles)
• Briarwood Park (2.3 miles)
• Clarkson Park (2.7 miles)
• Sunset Park (3.4 miles)
• South Park (4.1 miles)
• Fort Sheridan Forest Preserve (6 miles)
• Leahy Park (7.5 miles)

Physicians

• Northwestern Memorial Physicians Group (2.2 miles)
• NorthShore Medical Group (2.5 miles)
• Stuart Bergman-Bock MD - Northshore University Health Systems (7.7 miles)
• Ferber, Stuart Nch Buffalo Grove Outpatient Care Center (8.6 miles)
• North Shore Physicians Group (8.8 miles)

Cafes

• Starbucks (2.9 miles)
• Starbucks (3.4 miles)
• Starbucks (3.5 miles)
• Starbucks (4.1 miles)
• Starbucks (5.7 miles)
• Starbucks (5.8 miles)
• Starbucks (8.1 miles)

Transportation

• Metra (3.1 miles)
• Metra (3.7 miles)
• CTA-Linden (6.8 miles)
• Metra (7.3 miles)
• Metra (9.4 miles)

Hospitals

• Glenbrook Hospital (4.5 miles)
• Lake Forest Hospital (8.8 miles)
• Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital (9.1 miles)
• Saint Francis Hospital (9.5 miles)

Theaters

• Regal Lincolnshire & Imax (7.8 miles)
• AMC Village Crossing Theatre (9 miles)