New card provider for my 86 yr old Mother

ArmyDilllo

Hi all,

Unfortunately my 86 yr old Father is seriously ill in hospital.
This is likely to be ongoing.

My 86 yr old Mother has always relied upon him to administer their financial affairs and they've both done well from that arrangement.
However, I'm having to do this for her now (I already have approved PoA's for both).

They have a joint current account but a credit card account is in my Father's name as the primary holder and my Mother has an "extra" card under that account.
All their financial arrangements (mortgage, etc) have always been made in his name, with no liability falling upon her.

The disadvantage of this is that my Mother now has no credit history.
Their bank account will be switched to her name upon his death, without much problem.
But his credit card account will expire with him.
As her card is under his account, so will hers.
We have already approached the card provider (Barclaycard) who has confirmed this to be so.
Neither parent has ever had any credit problems and always paid bills fully and in good time.

She still does her own shopping and I'm keen for her to be able to do so for as long as possible.
I am concerned how she will be able to obtain a credit card now, at her age, with no credit history.
If I can get one set up I will link it to her current account, to be paid by direct debit, as it is now.

Any thoughts on this, please?
I seem to be spending far more time than I'd anticipated on their behalf due to the nature of my Father's illness and their deteriorating health generally.
Any thoughts on this which might save me some more would be appreciated.
Thank you in advance.

[Deleted User]

Who have you approached?

Has she tried her own bank? Or a sub prime provider?

JGB1955

Does she need a credit card? Presumably the bank will issue her a debit card on her/their current account without any problem. That would cut out the need for a direct debit payment too.

[Deleted User]

Could you not add her as second card holder on your cc?

A4445

Why not try an eligibility checker to she what her options are!

ArmyDilllo

Thanks guys.
She has a Debit card on her current account.
This question is specifically related to her having a Credit card.
I would rather she use this, on a 3rd party direct-debit settlement, rather than a debit card with direct access to her bank account.
Although she is able to use her credit card, and understands the differences between the two, using a debit card is different to her normal pattern and sadly she is now of an age where finds it a bit of a worry, just because it's not what she's used to.
Something we don't blink at, is a big deal for her.
She has to think twice about everything new because she's worried about falling for some kind of scam or doing something the bank might chastise her for.