Virgin taking advantage of vulnerable pensioners

ShoesAreDamnExpensive

My parents are elderly and vulnerable as my mum has dementia. It has now got to the point where I need to take over the finances etc as she has declined rapidly in the last month. My mum has always looked after their money so Dad doesn't have a clue. I have an LPA for both. 

So going through their statements today and Virgin have been charging them £150 per month for tv and broadband. £150!!!! They barely use broadband and the only channels they ever watch they could probably watch on freeview. Never watched a box set or movie in their lives. As far as I can see this goes back at least two years. 

I'm so angry. Surely this is criminal behaviour? The virgin charge equates to a quarter of Dad's monthly pension and they've had to use the little savings they have for food. 

Their customer services were a disgrace saying that a lasting power of attorney means nothing to them unless I can give them the password mum set up. The fact she has dementia was met with 'did she not write the password down' 

Clearly I'm moving them from Virgin but I want to pursue some kind of compensation given the vast difference between their needs and the package they were on. Has anyone come across this before?

Neil_Jones

ShoesAreDamnExpensive said:

My parents are elderly and vulnerable as my mum has dementia. It has now got to the point where I need to take over the finances etc as she has declined rapidly in the last month. My mum has always looked after their money so Dad doesn't have a clue. I have an LPA for both. 

So going through their statements today and Virgin have been charging them £150 per month for tv and broadband. £150!!!! They barely use broadband and the only channels they ever watch they could probably watch on freeview. Never watched a box set or movie in their lives. As far as I can see this goes back at least two years. 

I'm so angry. Surely this is criminal behaviour? The virgin charge equates to a quarter of Dad's monthly pension and they've had to use the little savings they have for food. 

Their customer services were a disgrace saying that a lasting power of attorney means nothing to them unless I can give them the password mum set up. The fact she has dementia was met with 'did she not write the password down' 

Clearly I'm moving them from Virgin but I want to pursue some kind of compensation given the vast difference between their needs and the package they were on. Has anyone come across this before?

So why didn't you get involved sooner?

The £150 thing is probably because its a legacy out of contract pricing.  That's normal to shoot through the roof when you're out of contract.  If they "barely" use broadband and TV who signed up for it and why?  I repeat, why didn't you get involved sooner in this matter?

If your mother was sound of mind and able to make her own decisions two years ago, that's not Virgin's fault, its not the responsibility of the provider to check the customer is on the right package, its the responsibility of the customer to do that, and it could be argued its the offspring responsibility to monitor/guide in this area as well.

So no its not "criminal" behaviour because they were happy to pay it.  That's not Virgin's problem.

Farway

Assuming by LPA you are referring to Enduring POA?

If so then I suggest to get the attention of Virgin you would need to write,pen, ink, stamp etc and either send certified copy, or details of the EPA so it can be looked up on line of the EPA with same letter

EPA is probably above the pay grade of telephone Customer Service agents

My EPA has a code that others can use to verify it's legit so I guess you have the same or similar

https://www.gov.uk/view-lasting-power-of-attorney

PS I'd keep the leter simple & to the point, explaining your parents condition and you will now be handling their affairs IAW the EPA

I would avoid ranting and going on about rip offs etc, keep to the point

[Deleted User]

ShoesAreDamnExpensive said:

Surely this is criminal behaviour? 

Absolutely not. Neither Virgin nor your parents have committed any crime.

You can write a letter of complaint and hope for some goodwill, unlikely thought it may be, but you're going to need to realign your understanding of the situation or they'll dismiss you out of hand.

ShoesAreDamnExpensive

Neil_Jones said:

ShoesAreDamnExpensive said:

My parents are elderly and vulnerable as my mum has dementia. It has now got to the point where I need to take over the finances etc as she has declined rapidly in the last month. My mum has always looked after their money so Dad doesn't have a clue. I have an LPA for both. 

So going through their statements today and Virgin have been charging them £150 per month for tv and broadband. £150!!!! They barely use broadband and the only channels they ever watch they could probably watch on freeview. Never watched a box set or movie in their lives. As far as I can see this goes back at least two years. 

I'm so angry. Surely this is criminal behaviour? The virgin charge equates to a quarter of Dad's monthly pension and they've had to use the little savings they have for food. 

Their customer services were a disgrace saying that a lasting power of attorney means nothing to them unless I can give them the password mum set up. The fact she has dementia was met with 'did she not write the password down' 

Clearly I'm moving them from Virgin but I want to pursue some kind of compensation given the vast difference between their needs and the package they were on. Has anyone come across this before?

So why didn't you get involved sooner?

The £150 thing is probably because its a legacy out of contract pricing.  That's normal to shoot through the roof when you're out of contract.  If they "barely" use broadband and TV who signed up for it and why?  I repeat, why didn't you get involved sooner in this matter?

If your mother was sound of mind and able to make her own decisions two years ago, that's not Virgin's fault, its not the responsibility of the provider to check the customer is on the right package, its the responsibility of the customer to do that, and it could be argued its the offspring responsibility to monitor/guide in this area as well.

So no its not "criminal" behaviour because they were happy to pay it.  That's not Virgin's problem.

I take it from that response Mr Jones that you have never had to go through the heart wrenching soul destroying process of watching your very active and intelligent mother decline whilst they are refusing to accept they are in any way incapacitated. I truly hope you.never have to personally find out why i didn't get so involved sooner to understand how heart breaking it is. 

By your thought process if someone signs up to a financial product which is sold to them by a con man then that shouldn't be compensated either. I truly wish you all the karma. 

ShoesAreDamnExpensive

I have a lasting power of attorney. Enduring power of attorneys were replaced by LPAs in 2007. I will check the registered copy but I don't recall seeing a code but will check. 

giraffe69

£150 is a lot and it can be reduced by negotiating, cancelling some services or (as you suggested) moving to someone else. I don't see how Virgin are supposed to know that a. your mother, sadly, has dementia nor that b. they "barely use" the services.
In your position I'd ask, politely, for the bill to be reduced and perhaps for some refund for services but don't be surprised if they decline. It might be time to check some other bills. When I looked at bills for my elderly parents in law some time ago the car insurance was an eyewatering amount and £100 was knocked off it by moving. No compensation was, however, requested as the household not the insurers were to blame.

victor2

Sorry for the situation you find yourself in, but there may well be other ongoing contracts you find eye watering as well.

Look on the positive side - with your help their monthly costs can probably be dramatically reduced. At least they should be "protected", as much as they can be, on their utilitiy bills by Ofgem's cap. But look at water bills, house and contents insurance etc.

Then look at ways to reduce their utility bills by organising their heating, cooking and hot water without compromising their comfort.

As already said though, don't expect compensation for what has happened through contracts expiring and falling into expensive automatic renewals.

Farway

ShoesAreDamnExpensive said:

I have a lasting power of attorney. Enduring power of attorneys were replaced by LPAs in 2007. I will check the registered copy but I don't recall seeing a code but will check. 

Right, I don't think there was a code back then. I had to get certified copies to show those I needed to.

My building society [Nationwide] provided certified copies for free when I went in to sort out my mother's savings accounts with them, yours may be as helpful but it was a few years back

Neil_Jones

ShoesAreDamnExpensive said:

I take it from that response Mr Jones that you have never had to go through the heart wrenching soul destroying process of watching your very active and intelligent mother decline whilst they are refusing to accept they are in any way incapacitated. I truly hope you.never have to personally find out why i didn't get so involved sooner to understand how heart breaking it is. 

By your thought process if someone signs up to a financial product which is sold to them by a con man then that shouldn't be compensated either. I truly wish you all the karma. 

I don't need to know why you didn't get involved sooner (its immaterial to the discussion in any event with all due respect), but the general overarching point I'm getting at here is that the broadband/TV/phone/whatever it is sounds like was bought years ago, and when your relative was sound of mind. That's the key decision.  You've even said as much in your post - "My mum looked after all the money", which would suggest they knew what they were signing up to at the time.

There is no crime here.  You may feel differently, but at the end of the day it doesn't do you any good to be spoon fed what you want to hear when the reality of the situation is on the other side as it were.

JSmithy45AD

ShoesAreDamnExpensive said:

Neil_Jones said:

ShoesAreDamnExpensive said:

My parents are elderly and vulnerable as my mum has dementia. It has now got to the point where I need to take over the finances etc as she has declined rapidly in the last month. My mum has always looked after their money so Dad doesn't have a clue. I have an LPA for both. 

So going through their statements today and Virgin have been charging them £150 per month for tv and broadband. £150!!!! They barely use broadband and the only channels they ever watch they could probably watch on freeview. Never watched a box set or movie in their lives. As far as I can see this goes back at least two years. 

I'm so angry. Surely this is criminal behaviour? The virgin charge equates to a quarter of Dad's monthly pension and they've had to use the little savings they have for food. 

Their customer services were a disgrace saying that a lasting power of attorney means nothing to them unless I can give them the password mum set up. The fact she has dementia was met with 'did she not write the password down' 

Clearly I'm moving them from Virgin but I want to pursue some kind of compensation given the vast difference between their needs and the package they were on. Has anyone come across this before?

So why didn't you get involved sooner?

The £150 thing is probably because its a legacy out of contract pricing.  That's normal to shoot through the roof when you're out of contract.  If they "barely" use broadband and TV who signed up for it and why?  I repeat, why didn't you get involved sooner in this matter?

If your mother was sound of mind and able to make her own decisions two years ago, that's not Virgin's fault, its not the responsibility of the provider to check the customer is on the right package, its the responsibility of the customer to do that, and it could be argued its the offspring responsibility to monitor/guide in this area as well.

So no its not "criminal" behaviour because they were happy to pay it.  That's not Virgin's problem.

I take it from that response Mr Jones that you have never had to go through the heart wrenching soul destroying process of watching your very active and intelligent mother decline whilst they are refusing to accept they are in any way incapacitated. I truly hope you.never have to personally find out why i didn't get so involved sooner to understand how heart breaking it is. 

By your thought process if someone signs up to a financial product which is sold to them by a con man then that shouldn't be compensated either. I truly wish you all the karma. 

What an emotional, childish response to a factual reply.