Using Power of Attorney to cancel a mobile contract

October_60

Hi, has anyone any help or advice to offer.  My brother needs to chance his wife's mobile phone contracts (4 at the last count) by using Power of Attorney.  She is in a care home and not able to manager her affairs herself now.  The companies don't seem to want to accept POA and seem to have employed delaying tactics of , for example, ignoring complaint letters.    He did get a quicker response by cancelling the direct debit payments, but then demand letters and veiled threats of bailiffs have caused him additional stress.  Any advice would be appreciated.  Thank you. 

sdduk

One thing he should never have done is cancel the dd because now they will use bailiffs because he has stopped payments.
also afaik being Power of Attorney doesn't give you the right to just cancel contracts its to control there money and pay there bills. has he got propper Power of Attorney? because you have to apply and it cost you a lot of money it's not free my sister has just done it for my Dad and it cost her near £3000 with what she had to do before she could get it. 
my dad is in a home with dementia. 
Hope you get it sorted and Good luck.

EssexExile

sdduk said:

One thing he should never have done is cancel the dd because now they will use bailiffs because he has stopped payments.
also afaik being Power of Attorney doesn't give you the right to just cancel contracts its to control there money and pay there bills. has he got propper Power of Attorney? because you have to apply and it cost you a lot of money it's not free my sister has just done it for my Dad and it cost her near £3000 with what she had to do before she could get it. 
my dad is in a home with dementia. 
Hope you get it sorted and Good luck.

Power of Attorney is easily done online and costs about £80.

Mojisola

sdduk said:

my sister has just done it for my Dad and it cost her near £3000 with what she had to do before she could get it. 
my dad is in a home with dementia.

It sounds as if your sister had to go to the Court of Protection because your father wasn't capable of appointing his own attorneys.  That's a lot more expensive and slower to do - although £3k sounds over the top.

chistery

Might help to say which network it is?

Farway

Mojisola said:

sdduk said:

my sister has just done it for my Dad and it cost her near £3000 with what she had to do before she could get it. 
my dad is in a home with dementia.

It sounds as if your sister had to go to the Court of Protection because your father wasn't capable of appointing his own attorneys.  That's a lot more expensive and slower to do - although £3k sounds over the top.

Maybe the additional costs of medical examinations & reports at Doctors rates + legal fees would soon bump it up to that figure

[Deleted User]

October_60 said:

Hi, has anyone any help or advice to offer.  My brother needs to chance his wife's mobile phone contracts (4 at the last count) by using Power of Attorney.  She is in a care home and not able to manager her affairs herself now.  The companies don't seem to want to accept POA and seem to have employed delaying tactics of , for example, ignoring complaint letters.    He did get a quicker response by cancelling the direct debit payments, but then demand letters and veiled threats of bailiffs have caused him additional stress.  Any advice would be appreciated.  Thank you. 

Just use PAC/ STAC codes assuming he has valid legal authority:
Use a PAC to transfer a number he wishes to keep (terminating the original contact) 
Use a STAC to cancel the old number (terminating the original contact) 

These can be obtained from any provider other than her current one and prepay sim cards are probably the easiest route - avoid those that need a top-up to activate such as Giffgaff or Smarty