Hello. I'm fairly new to this journey; my Dad was diagnosed a year ago. He had to surrender his driving licence about 10 months ago and is having difficulty understanding why. We now feel it might be better to sell the car as it has become an obsession that he needs to drive it again. The question is, if anyone has come across this before, can we sell the car using our Power of Attorney? Has anyone been in the same position, did it help alleviate the worries by removing the object causing the obsession? Any suggestions appreciated, thanks.
Using POA to sell car
- Thread starter EmJF
- Start date
Yes...you can sell it with or without POA(financial)....I sold my husband's 4x4 when he was advised to not drive again...it was in the garage for a few months and he too was getting agitated as to why he wasn't allowed to drive,but his spacial awareness and general reactions were gone,and so he was a danger to other road users and himself.
Thank you. We just feel if he can't see the car, then hopefully his obsession with it will lesson and eventually he will forget about it - like a lot of other things sadly.
If you have a friend or family members driveway/garage to park it on it may help in the short term pending a sale - out of sight/out of mind - although you would need to explain what had happened to it to your Dad.
I sold dad's car with poa and had no problem with the process. Dad would pace around day and particularly at night continuously checking the car on the drive from the window, we hadn't let him drive it for months, I had moved in with him. Didn't discuss or explain to dad, discreetly arranged without him knowing and arranged collection off the drive while we went shopping. I was dreading the love lies in readiness for when we got back and he would notice the car gone....he didn't notice, or look for the car and although not too articulate by that stage, never mentioned the car not being there. Out of sight out of mind definitely worked for me.
Thank you, that's really helpful. My dad keeps charging the battery on the car and asking when he will be "signed off" the doctor so he can drive again. We're thinking of taking it for it's MOT and it "needing a lot of work doing". Lying has never been my strong point, but I'm getting used to the love lies and understanding that they help both ways!
Thank you, yes we can put it somewhere else for the time being. I think we're going to tell him the MOT is due and we need to take it as he will understand that ......... if he asks after it, we can then explain it failed the MOT and will cost a lot to put it right. Hopefully he will forget about it then. It's a huge learning curve!
Not only does the car need its MOT, the parts needed to fix it have to be ordered from the EU which is going to take a while due to Brexit and the pandemic. And unfortuntaely, would you believe it, the garage ordered the wrong part so it'll be a while yet...
And so it goes on! ?
And so it goes on! ?
Wow, yes. I can see I'm going to be getting creative with these stories!
Love the Pink Floyd quote - very apt
Hello, I'm in the same situation my dad has yet to be diagnosed but we are all sure he has a form of Dementia, my issue is with the car also. He is adamant that he doesn't have a problem and says he will never stop driving, I think as a previous comment, we would need to do it when he is in hospital. That's very difficult to get him in there also. Upsetting and tough times ahead as my mum wants to do this on her own. 😪 🙏 Thank-you keep up the good work to all those who are struggling with dementia in there family
My husband is undiagnosed but am sure he has got dementia. Getting lost in familiar routes and driving slowly he is 82 yrs. Reluctant to give up driving, the car was over 20 yrs old and he had it from new. Spent more than £1000 to pass mot last year. Have been telling him to get rid it as it will not to pass the mot. After much nagging and upset I did manage to sell the car on Monday with the help of my neighbour, we sold it to webuyanycar. We did not get much for it but it did not matter. I could not forgive myself if he had an accident. He is getting used to it now. He signed a letter giving me authorisation to sell but I use the power of attorney . How old is your dad? I did tell my husband, all over 80 needs a driving assessment and I do not think he will pass. He also needs to attend a well man clinic, made appointment behind his back and will write to gp about my concerns. He does not think there is anything wrong with him mentally or his driving. Discuss with him why he should give up driving. With husband I told him was not going to get into the car with him. He only drive once a week for weekly shopping. If you are that concerned tell him whilst he is in the hospital make some excuses and sell the car. I thought my husband was going to be angry with me but he got used to the idea. Hope this helps.