Aylesbury care worker thwarts fraudster who targeted the elderly

Mary Ann Lissimore from Aylesbury thwarted a fraudsters attempt to steal money from a vulnerable client

A 'caregiver thwarted a fraudster from convincing a client to sign a contract for home improvements worth £7,000.

Mary Ann Lissimore from Aylesbury spotted that her client’s door was open when she arrived for her scheduled care visit, which raised her suspicions.

On entering, she found a young man in the home gathering together a contract ready to be signed by the client.

Mary Ann asked the salesman why he was there.

As she was suspicious, she kept him busy whilst calling her manager, Assad Bashir from Home Instead, to inform him of what was happening.

Assad immediately called the client’s son, John, to find out if he had any knowledge of the home improvements contract. This prompted John to visit his mum immediately.

During this time, Mary Ann kept the salesman engaged until John arrived to challenge him. On John’s arrival the young man left very quickly.

Throughout the ordeal, Mary Ann remained in the home and supported her client to ensure she was not upset or anxious. John has now taken the issue to Trading Standards and to the police, supported by Home Instead.

Home Instead gratefully received a thank you note from John, praising Mary Ann’s swift thinking during the whole event, and also Assad’s diligence in seeking clarity from the family.

He said, “Mary Ann’s and Assad’s intervention and support avoided my mum signing a contract that could have committed her to £7000 of work she did not need on her house. The salesman got a nasty shock when I turned up and soon left.”

Lee Harrington, managing director of Home Instead, said: “I am very proud of Mary Ann and the way she handled the situation. My caregivers get to know their clients very well due to minimum one hour visits, so are in a good position to identify any problems that may occur. The prevention of financial loss to one of our clients has been an amazing result’.

For more information regarding Home Instead, please call 01844 202778 or visit: https://www.homeinstead.co.uk/aylesbury-oxfordshire.