Might also be worth looking into whether such selling over the phone constitutes financial exploitation. In the worst case of course, a person may be declared to not have capacity and thus someone running a guardianship or full welfare POA takes over entirely, even if the account remains in the affected person's name.
My step-Dad spent hundreds on wine he didn't need; I think he just enjoyed the company, ie. the visits by the wine seller rep, and the chats over the phone when they'd call with more offers. A POA wasn't in place yet at the time so I couldn't do much, but interestingly the wine buying was halted when a new delivery turned up while a lady from social services was visiting (someone who takes him to daycare twice a week), she firmly told the company to stop it, or else (the penalties for financial exploitation of the elderly are severe). A POA is in place now, so no more wine purchased, but there's a mountain of bottles in the garage I need to sell off. When my Mum was still alive, she and my step-Dad used to love their wine, though that was many years ago, but like so many things such regular purchases don't get reigned in or shut down when they no longer make sense. My Mum, for her part, became a tad obsessed with buying things from catalogue companies before she had to move to a care home (mainly clothes, but sometimes household items like pots & pans aswell); thankfully many of them could be returned, but there are dozens of unused items I need to deal with (I plan on listing them on the local community for-sale Facebook group over the summer). Catalogue companies vary in how willing they are to help with such issues.
I talked to one care visitor who said she'd seen something similar, clearing out a house after an elderly lady had passed away, there were hundreds of unopened wine bottles everywhere (cupboards, behind curtains, under stairs); her late husband's passion, she'd just kept it going more as a reminder of him.
This can all be frustrating of course because at the same time one is often having to cope with major care costs such as house modifications, care visitors, mobility accessories, cleaning, etc. If things do get bad though, talk to social services, solicitor, GP, the bank, etc., look into POA/Guardianship setups. Indeed, it's best to get these arrangements in place sooner rather than later, as it becomes complicated, costly and stressful if left until after such things suddenly become essential. Also worth looking into whether the person has a proper Will in place; I was amazed to discover my Mum didn't (she and my step-Dad had prepared drafts via a solicitor, but never finalised them, so that was a priority that had to be dealt with alongside sorting out a POA). Without looking into these issues beforehand, one can find an exponential pile of information that has to be absorbed in all too short a time when things take a turn for the worse.
Certainly a complicated problem re does one try to prevent purchases in high street shops, at the risk of making a scene. Might be an idea to ask to speak to the store manager separately, explain the situation, see if they can help re making sure items can be returned (presumably as long as you have the receipts).
Ian.
My step-Dad spent hundreds on wine he didn't need; I think he just enjoyed the company, ie. the visits by the wine seller rep, and the chats over the phone when they'd call with more offers. A POA wasn't in place yet at the time so I couldn't do much, but interestingly the wine buying was halted when a new delivery turned up while a lady from social services was visiting (someone who takes him to daycare twice a week), she firmly told the company to stop it, or else (the penalties for financial exploitation of the elderly are severe). A POA is in place now, so no more wine purchased, but there's a mountain of bottles in the garage I need to sell off. When my Mum was still alive, she and my step-Dad used to love their wine, though that was many years ago, but like so many things such regular purchases don't get reigned in or shut down when they no longer make sense. My Mum, for her part, became a tad obsessed with buying things from catalogue companies before she had to move to a care home (mainly clothes, but sometimes household items like pots & pans aswell); thankfully many of them could be returned, but there are dozens of unused items I need to deal with (I plan on listing them on the local community for-sale Facebook group over the summer). Catalogue companies vary in how willing they are to help with such issues.
I talked to one care visitor who said she'd seen something similar, clearing out a house after an elderly lady had passed away, there were hundreds of unopened wine bottles everywhere (cupboards, behind curtains, under stairs); her late husband's passion, she'd just kept it going more as a reminder of him.
This can all be frustrating of course because at the same time one is often having to cope with major care costs such as house modifications, care visitors, mobility accessories, cleaning, etc. If things do get bad though, talk to social services, solicitor, GP, the bank, etc., look into POA/Guardianship setups. Indeed, it's best to get these arrangements in place sooner rather than later, as it becomes complicated, costly and stressful if left until after such things suddenly become essential. Also worth looking into whether the person has a proper Will in place; I was amazed to discover my Mum didn't (she and my step-Dad had prepared drafts via a solicitor, but never finalised them, so that was a priority that had to be dealt with alongside sorting out a POA). Without looking into these issues beforehand, one can find an exponential pile of information that has to be absorbed in all too short a time when things take a turn for the worse.
Certainly a complicated problem re does one try to prevent purchases in high street shops, at the risk of making a scene. Might be an idea to ask to speak to the store manager separately, explain the situation, see if they can help re making sure items can be returned (presumably as long as you have the receipts).
Ian.
What, giving it away? save enough up then get a site at a boot sale.
