Once again i am going round and round in circles and I so appreciate the wisdom and support you all give me on this site dealing with this terrible disease ( i will not bore you with my situation but i am the same as you all on here trying to our best in horrible situations .) my mother diagnosed with vascular dementia eighteen months ago has rapidly declined in the last two weeks. and on my last visit no recoginition at all which was heartbreaking . Mum and I have been so close over the years until dementia kicked in and now i am public enemy no 1 , have stolen everything , am bad evil and really nasty ( realise that this is normal behaviour from reading posts on here however my mum went into care home in april from sheltered housing council run and i thought i had taken care of everything terminating lease etc however now find that after phonecall from warden that my mum's phone line is still active and that vulnerable new resident in my mum's previous flat cannot have phone line connected. So I contacted phone provider to explain that I wanted to end contract ( no fixed time ) to be told i could not act on my mother's behalf without designated authority have explained situation to advisor told to get letter delegating authority to mefrom my mum to them , totally understand data protection act however mother so hostile now and suspicious would not sign it for me . I went back andexplained the situation to them but they are adamant that they require mother to consent otherwise phone line will stay open and bills will be sent however they gave me number for their debt collectors who confirmed bills outstanding from jan 2014 goodness knows what she signed up probably broadband , bills now total almost three hundred and fifty pounds which i have said that will be honoured. I have asked her care home to retain mail which looks official in order that Imay deal with it however they say all mail must be delivered to her regardless therefore i never see crucial mail. I am now in the position of seeking to forge her signature in order to terminate her phone account and stop bills accruing, I am aware this would be a criminal act so dont want to break the law. I do not have POA as she previously been deemed as having capacity although i will now pursue with advice from ss through court but this will take time meanwhile bills will mount up and new vulnerable tenant cannot have phone line. i realise that this cry for advice is seemingly trivial but this is just the tip of the iceberg I have experienced the total helplessness and despair and i applaud and care this site is a godsend thanks each and everyone advice needed
Tempted to forge mum's signature
- Thread starter rosa4077
- Start date
You have your mum's very best interests at heart.
I think you should forge her signature and get the debt cleared. It really needs to be done for her sake.
She has always used you, and this is causing a lot of anxiety for you and the new vulnerable tenant.
Sorry - that was supposed to read "She has always trusted you", not "used you"
I think you should forge her signature and get the debt cleared. It really needs to be done for her sake.
She has always used you, and this is causing a lot of anxiety for you and the new vulnerable tenant.
Sorry - that was supposed to read "She has always trusted you", not "used you"
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Can you not close the account over the phone? I am always saying I am my mum to speak to utilities to sort out problems on bills etc. they don't seem to question the fact I sound younger (40 yr diff).
If they need a letter from your mum to cancel, type it out and sign it as her. I have done this for my dad on several things including transferring his tessa into his current account to pay for his care. We do what we have too and as long as it is in your mums best interest I would sleep with a clear conscious.
If they need a letter from your mum to cancel, type it out and sign it as her. I have done this for my dad on several things including transferring his tessa into his current account to pay for his care. We do what we have too and as long as it is in your mums best interest I would sleep with a clear conscious.
Hi betsie what a wonderful idea i never thought of doing that maybe try that tomorrow thanks
Name them and shame them then get the e-mail address of their customer services and e-mail them putting most (without the forgery bit
) of what you've said on here copy in BBC Watchdog, The Daily Mail/Express your local MP, Mumsnet and anyone else you can think of you and might be surprised at the reaction when a bit of adverse publicity looks imminent. Problem is the robot on the phone follows what the computer tells them, move it up a level and someone with some sense and level of authority will step in. Did you get a mail redirect set up to your house or your Mum's care home? If you had the post sent to your house it would have been easier to manage. I ended some of my Mum's utility bills by telling them my Mum was going into a home (she was but it was my home, I left that bit out) and said I couldn't give them her new address due to "data protection" send me a bill now or swivel on it, it worked.
K
) of what you've said on here copy in BBC Watchdog, The Daily Mail/Express your local MP, Mumsnet and anyone else you can think of you and might be surprised at the reaction when a bit of adverse publicity looks imminent. Problem is the robot on the phone follows what the computer tells them, move it up a level and someone with some sense and level of authority will step in. Did you get a mail redirect set up to your house or your Mum's care home? If you had the post sent to your house it would have been easier to manage. I ended some of my Mum's utility bills by telling them my Mum was going into a home (she was but it was my home, I left that bit out) and said I couldn't give them her new address due to "data protection" send me a bill now or swivel on it, it worked.K
hi sonas thanks for that support just feels so wrong to forge signature although it is best interests no gain for me so might not be criminal
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Don't forge her signature please, you could get in a world of trouble. Don't panic. I recommend talking to Citizens Advice.
You could notify the phone provider in writing of your mum's current circumstances. Tell them she is a vulnerable adult who has not granted POA to anyone and they won't be getting paid because your mum lacks capacity to manage her affairs. Ask them if they will write off the debt and close the account. They probably won't write off the debt, but you will have a paper trail showing you have acted responsibly in notifying them of the situation.
If they respond by writing to your mum the letter will be sent to the account address so you'll have to get the warden to give it to you. I would imagine their next step will be to pass the debt over to a debt recovery agency, but they probably won't do this yet and the debt could get a lot bigger, especially if someone else starts using her telephone.
I would not offer to pay them. It's your mum's debt. If they want to take her to court that could precipitate a mental capacity assessment, so it's not to your advantage, or hers, to be too helpful at this stage.
With regard to the phone line in the flat, this is unfortunate but it's not your problem. If you pick up everyone else's monkeys you won't be able to walk for the weight on your shoulders.
You could notify the phone provider in writing of your mum's current circumstances. Tell them she is a vulnerable adult who has not granted POA to anyone and they won't be getting paid because your mum lacks capacity to manage her affairs. Ask them if they will write off the debt and close the account. They probably won't write off the debt, but you will have a paper trail showing you have acted responsibly in notifying them of the situation.
If they respond by writing to your mum the letter will be sent to the account address so you'll have to get the warden to give it to you. I would imagine their next step will be to pass the debt over to a debt recovery agency, but they probably won't do this yet and the debt could get a lot bigger, especially if someone else starts using her telephone.
I would not offer to pay them. It's your mum's debt. If they want to take her to court that could precipitate a mental capacity assessment, so it's not to your advantage, or hers, to be too helpful at this stage.
With regard to the phone line in the flat, this is unfortunate but it's not your problem. If you pick up everyone else's monkeys you won't be able to walk for the weight on your shoulders.
If you pick up everyone else's monkeys you won't be able to walk for the weight on your shoulders.
What a brilliant expression, I can't wait to use it, I might go one step further and say "If you pick up everyone else's monkeys you won't be able to walk to the greengrocers for more effin bananas for the weight on your shoulders"
K
Do not forge your mothers signature, pay the bill with a cheque from your account[get this back from your mother] give BT name of new client. if they will not accept your final payment, let them cut the line. the debt will not be new tenants responsibility, new tenant will then apply for reconnection. I know this sounds harsh, but I had same problem and once the unpaid portion became a debt, BT were so open to discussion, mums outstanding account was only £40 but the hoops I went through while the line was still contacted, its not like we were trying to avoid payment, seems sometimes red tape gets in the way of paying a bill!
I don't know if there is such a thing as an ombudsman in UK but in Australia we have these people for various areas such as telecommunications. They are independent of any of the companies, corporations etc and have been brilliant in helping me sort out 2 different problems I had with 2 different providers.
It could be worth investigating if such entities exist abnd seeking their assistance.
It could be worth investigating if such entities exist abnd seeking their assistance.
I agree with people saying don't forge your mum' signature - tempting as I can see that would be in the circumstances. You could get into trouble for it, and it even might stand in the way of you being appointed (eventually) to handle your mother's affairs.
I would write to the company ( as suggested by Katrine) so that you have a written record of what you've done. You never know, they may respond to a letter better too.
In any case, this is not your debt, so you cannot be expected to pay it.
Good luck
Lindy xx
I would write to the company ( as suggested by Katrine) so that you have a written record of what you've done. You never know, they may respond to a letter better too.
In any case, this is not your debt, so you cannot be expected to pay it.
Good luck
Lindy xx
http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/scotl...ining_to_the_telecommunications_ombudsman.htm I hope these can help you.
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I must admit- it may work to pretend to be your mum on the phone, but as said any comeback if things went wrong would come back on you- if you have all details on you if they ask details about your mum and her account
I always get annoyed with their attitude, utilities told us we could speak on mums behalf if she was present, all she would have to do is answer the security questions before handing over to us(she hasn't got online or passwords etc.so would have had to be DOB etc I suppose) I always wonder how they would know it was mum with us anyhow over the phone??
I always get annoyed with their attitude, utilities told us we could speak on mums behalf if she was present, all she would have to do is answer the security questions before handing over to us(she hasn't got online or passwords etc.so would have had to be DOB etc I suppose) I always wonder how they would know it was mum with us anyhow over the phone??
My m had a line borrowed to a friend that died. As I am legally responsible for mom, I phoned company who refuses to cancel the line, ( I send copies of docs and they refused). I let line without payment for 3 month and called back, they accepted to cancel the line if I paid the bill.
Have you tried to talk with old
Lady relatives?
Have you tried to talk with old
Lady relatives?
I can only echo the don't forge the signature advice, but I would say don't pay the bill, when they're not getting paid they'll cut it off anyway. I would tell them the bill won't be getting paid, and if they try to make your mother pay via debt collectors, you'll be happy to have your local press cover the story of the bad company suing the dementia patient in a home.
I'd play hardball now with the company and don't pay it, if you pay it, the line will stay open as things stand and it will continue.
I'd play hardball now with the company and don't pay it, if you pay it, the line will stay open as things stand and it will continue.
Thanks to everyone
Once again thank you for everyone to responding no i will not forge my mums signature but try to resolve , so tempted to call up phone company and just say i am mother , but afraid comments previously made on account will have been added just w\ant to walk away thanks to everyone who has responded big hugs rosa
Once again thank you for everyone to responding no i will not forge my mums signature but try to resolve , so tempted to call up phone company and just say i am mother , but afraid comments previously made on account will have been added just w\ant to walk away thanks to everyone who has responded big hugs rosa
