Terminally ill mother with £12,000 catalogue debt

Craig_Peterson

Hi there,

I was recommended to visit this forum by a friend. I have a strange situation and Im not sure what to do so was looking for any help and advice I can find.

My mother was diagnosed with brain tumours in April. Up until this point she was fine but suffered what appeared to be a mini stroke and was taken in for a scan where the shadow areas in her lung and brain showed up.

She was a fan of catalogue shopping but never let on her circumstances with it all. As her symptoms worsened she ended up being taken into hospital in late May and stayed there until being moved by the NHS to a care home where she currently lives.

We (my sister and I) had said we would deal with her house and mail etc but were sternly warned not to interfere as it was one thing she wanted to look after "until she could no longer". Unfortunately that time has now passed and her mental wellness is deteriorating to the point where she some days cant remember who we are or which day or the week it is.

My sister and I had been stockpiling her mail for her and last week decided now was the time to go through things and get the bigger picture which unfortunately is quite grim.

My mum has around £12,000 worth of catalogue debt from what looks to be 8 different companies or divisions:

JD Williams
ISME
Very
Damart
Studio
Witt
Fashion World
Daxon

At a point around a month ago my sister did try to contact one of the firms who basically said they wouldnt speak to her as she was not the account holder and for that to happen they would need a written letter from the NHS to confirm my mother was unwell and even at that it would only allow my sister to talk about the account ... although she could happily pay the balance on her own card there and then with no further security checks.

As my mother is going to be in the care home for the rest of her days Im really not sure the best way to proceed with this.

Her home is fully paid for and she has accrued around £2,000 in payments to her bank while she has been in hospital and now in the home but that doesnt scratch the surface and we do not currently have any access to her accounts as we are not authorised third parties or have power of attorney.

I have contacted my local CAB but need to drop in to see them next week so thought Id ask online first of all

We live in Scotland so Im not sure if that makes a difference in regard to the debt and what can be done.

Thanks for any advice,

Craig

sam89

Hi,

So sorry to hear about your Mum, what a horrible time for you all, xxx.

I'm a nurse in palliative care and I would highly recommend you contact Macmillan Cancer Support. They have expert advisors, nurses and social workers who can give you proper advice and assistance to sort out your Mum's financial situation.

http://www.macmillan.org.uk/home.aspx?gclid=CJyc3-WdoLkCFQTMtAodNWEABg

Good luck, xxx.

emmaglet

Hi Craig,

Sorry, I'm not too sure that I've got much advice, but I wanted to let you know that I had read this.

When my Mum passed away suddenly in 2007, we were not eligible for her outstanding debts. We did get non-payment reminders but we were told these were automatic. Some companies required a copy of the death certificate, but others were fine about it. I know that isn't much help now but I thought I'd add in my experience.

[Deleted User]

Sorry to hear the sad news about your mother.

As for the debts, her estate will be liable for the debts, but nobody else (family, friends etc.) is.

If the estate remaining (after funeral, taxes and secured debts have been settled) is not sufficient to settle the catalogue (and indeed any other unsecured debts), then the creditors are out of luck.

Tixy

Welcome to the forum and sorry to hear about your Mother.
Good ideas to contact CAB or ask Macmillian for advice.

I guess ideally what you want is for the creditors to agree put a hold on the accounts for them to eventually be paid out of your Mother's estate (assuming the value of the house/estate is not used up in car home fees by then).

I imagine in this situation there will be a difference down to timing/life expectancy.
There is no power of attorney and it sounds like your Mother is probably no longer classed as having the mental capacity to make that decision. Therefore the only way to take charge of her finances and assets whilst she is alive would be to get a court order to appoint you and/or sister as a deputy. http://www.gov.uk/apply-to-the-court-of-protection

If her life expectancy is very short then it may be that there is not time for it to be worth considering applying to the court. If that is the case then it may be worth writing to the catalogue creditors, explaining the situation and enclosing something from the hospital and asking that whether they will freeze the interest on the accounts and wait for them to be settled from the estate.
If you will be applying to the court to be appointed deputy I would probably still write to the catalogue creditors and explain the situation and that you will be applying to the court and ask them to freeze the accounts until you have gone through that process.

poppasmurf_bewdley

Firstly, can I offer my deepest sympathy for what you are going through at the moment.

Although it is probably of no use to you and your family in your situation, can I make a plea to others who may be reading this and who have elderly relatives to get a Power of Attorney document signed via a solicitor before you need it, because when you need it and you haven't done it, it's too late.

We did it for my late Mother via the family solicitor. It only cost £100 to give my brother and myself the POA should it be needed. And it was needed at the end when we had to deal with banks, DWP, insurance companies, etc, etc.

I saw a programme about POA on the Community Channel (or maybe it was the Information Channel), rang my Mum who then watched it herself, and she agreed straight away to do it. When it's put sensibly to most elderly people, I'm sure they will be willing to agree.

Craig_Peterson

Thank you to everyone who replied to my posting.

Sorry I have not been on again for a while, things have kinda declined with my mums health so Ive not had any real chance to come back on here or even deal with the issues I highlighted.

The information though is invaluable and I will go over it with my sister very soon, though the outlook at the care home at present is not great so we are spending as much time there as possible at the moment.

Thank you all once again

heartbreak_star

I'm so sorry to hear about your mum. Best of luck getting everything sorted!

HBS x