Damart chasing late mum for payments

mandy1955

My mum passed away on 9th June this year quite suddenly, she had little or no debts and was insured just enough for the funeral.

However, she was being bombarded by Damart to buy things from their catalogue, we have in our possession numerous letters saying ' you have won £xxx amount of money and if you buy this item or that item we will send you details on how to receive it....It looks like the old Readers Digest ruse that many elderly people fell for.

Mum had a balance of £200 with them which they are demanding from us now. I am really concerned at how they conduct their business as their products appeal to the older person...my mum has had so many letters saying 'there is a cheque for £15,000 with your name on it, simply order an item from our catalogue to receive more detail.
I am so annoyed at this company preying on people, I wouldn't mind but mums wardrobe was full of their clothes still with tags on....can anyone advise me if they can claim this money or should I take it further, trading standards etc...
We have rung them and asked for a supervisor but up to now no one has called us back. Thank you in advance.

Yorkshireman99

mandy1955 wrote: »

My mum passed away on 9th June this year quite suddenly, she had little or no debts and was insured just enough for the funeral.

However, she was being bombarded by Damart to buy things from their catalogue, we have in our possession numerous letters saying ' you have won £xxx amount of money and if you buy this item or that item we will send you details on how to receive it....It looks like the old Readers Digest ruse that many elderly people fell for.

Mum had a balance of £200 with them which they are demanding from us now. I am really concerned at how they conduct their business as their products appeal to the older person...my mum has had so many letters saying 'there is a cheque for £15,000 with your name on it, simply order an item from our catalogue to receive more detail.
I am so annoyed at this company preying on people, I wouldn't mind but mums wardrobe was full of their clothes still with tags on....can anyone advise me if they can claim this money or should I take it further, trading standards etc...
We have rung them and asked for a supervisor but up to now no one has called us back. Thank you in advance.

Damart have no claim except against your mother's estate. You, and your family have no liability whatsoever for your mother's debts. Just write to them and say that your mum had no funds and that they should cease writing to you.

Keep_pedalling

If your mother had no assets above her funeral costs then simply inform them of your mother's death and state that her estate is insolvent and that you are not dealing with her estate. If on the other hand she had savings or other assets after funeral costs, then this dept needs to be paid by the estate, before it is distributed to the beneficiaries.

I would not bother wasting your time with trading standards. I am also surprised about the marketing as I get their catalog sent to my home for my mother who is in a care home, and we have never had anything like that.

FreeBear

mandy1955 wrote: »

However, she was being bombarded by Damart to buy things from their catalogue, we have in our possession numerous letters saying ' you have won £xxx amount of money and if you buy this item or that item we will send you details on how to receive it....It looks like the old Readers Digest ruse that many elderly people fell for.

Search for "Think Jessica" and have a read of the tale - Your experience is not a new one, and unfortunately, there are other companies that indulge in this sort of marketing.

Don't waste your time phoning these people. Always write so that there is no denying what was (or wasn't) said. if they keep demanding money, tell them that they can make an appointment and collect the goods at their expense.

Yorkshireman99

The goods, if any belong to the estate, unless the seller reserved ownership rights.

badmemory

If the items still have tags on why not try returning them, you may get enough credit to clear the account. It is unfortunate that once people get past a certain age they do get preyed upon by some catalogue companies. Whatever is left in the account should be paid from the estate even though I know that it must gripe.