Man who froze to death left $600,000

[AHSPanther23]

93-year-old had power cut off by utility over about $1,000 in unpaid bills

 

Electric Companies disgust me during this time of the year.

[Blue Magic]

Elderly people, especially a WWII Veteran, should never be treated like that.

 

I am sure the electric company knew what they were doing and who they were doing it to.

[GaViking]

It's a shame he didn't have someone to help him pay his bills. A terrible tragedy that didn't have to happen. I can't believe an electric company would cut your power in the dead of winter.

[Ms Liberty]

Peoople and computers have no heart.

[HHSDad]

Did you all read the same article that I read? First off, the man was $1000 in arrears. That's two to three months behind on his electric bill. Second, the man had $600,000!!!! Why didn't he pay his bill? Third, virtually every power company will work with their customers to help them keep their power on. Finally, Michigan has a HEAP program that would have helped him.

 

Sounds to me like this was the man's fault, but go ahead and blame the power company if you like.

[cch5432]

Did you all read the same article that I read? First off, the man was $1000 in arrears. That's two to three months behind on his electric bill. Second, the man had $600,000!!!! Why didn't he pay his bill? Third, virtually every power company will work with their customers to help them keep their power on. Finally, Michigan has a HEAP program that would have helped him.

 

Sounds to me like this was the man's fault, but go ahead and blame the power company if you like.

 

That is what I was thinking as well. I do wonder if the company tried to contact him to collect the bills though one has to imagine they did.

[Cameraman]

Elderly people, especially a WWII Veteran, should never be treated like that.

I am sure the electric company knew what they were doing and who they were doing it to.

 

Right.. I'm sure the Electric Company had a bounty out for the guy.

 

It's tragic that he died... But the Electric Company was doing it's job. There has got to be a way the man could've communicated to the electric company? Did he have no family or anything to check up on him?

[getalife]

93-year-old had power cut off by utility over about $1,000 in unpaid bills

 

Electric Companies disgust me during this time of the year.

 

Did they disgust you last week when they were out in the ice and snow working around the clock to get people's power back on? What about the electric companies who sent employees out of state away from their homes and families to restore power?

[rockmom]

That is what I was thinking as well. I do wonder if the company tried to contact him to collect the bills though one has to imagine they did.

 

Electric companies send out late notices with a shut-off date. But, I don't imagine in this day and age they go to the door personally to collect their moola.

 

I do wonder where his family was, and why they weren't helping him stay on top of things. He was 93! He probably had some memory issues. I don't blame anyone in particular here, it is a tragedy in many ways. There are community resources available for families to utilize if they are unable to provide personal checks to their loved ones. It's a shame no one was checking on this gentleman.

[kygirl]

Tragic on so many levels. I kind of think maybe the fellow didn't have any family since he left an estimated $600,000 to a hospital. He was 93 so probably alot of his friends/family had died. Agree with rockmom-It's a shame no one was checking on this gentleman.

[GaViking]

Did you all read the same article that I read? First off, the man was $1000 in arrears. That's two to three months behind on his electric bill. Second, the man had $600,000!!!! Why didn't he pay his bill? Third, virtually every power company will work with their customers to help them keep their power on. Finally, Michigan has a HEAP program that would have helped him.

 

Sounds to me like this was the man's fault, but go ahead and blame the power company if you like.

 

The man was 93 yrs old. If I remember correctly his wife died a couple of years ago and they had no children. He should have had a POA for someone to at least be able to pay his bills. He could have had memory issues. If I left my dog with no heat and he died I would definately be held accountable for my actions. As far as HEAP, he would have needed help filling out the forms as well.

[JPP]

The man was 93, he may not realize when he has paid bills or not. Call me incompetent it you want, but if I dont have a bill, I assume I have paid it. Recently, I had about every service shut off without warning, because the post office decided they were no longer delivering my mail until I showed up to pick it up. Some type of notification would have been nice.

 

I can only imagine how something similar or worse could happen to someone of that age!

[GaViking]

If I remember correctly, the company put the device on his unit and they posted a note on his front door. The neighbors stated he rarely came outside in the winter. The neighbors also stated he would sit near his picture window, and that he had a nice house. I'm sorry, this is something I would never want to happen to any relative I know.

[eccheer]

Did you all read the same article that I read? First off, the man was $1000 in arrears. That's two to three months behind on his electric bill. Second, the man had $600,000!!!! Why didn't he pay his bill? Third, virtually every power company will work with their customers to help them keep their power on. Finally, Michigan has a HEAP program that would have helped him.

 

Sounds to me like this was the man's fault, but go ahead and blame the power company if you like.

 

I'll apologize now for my rambling but . . . as a social worker (and as someone who evaluates individuals for guardianship) my thought process automatically attempts to conduct a comprehensive assessment of his entire situation. I can't help but wonder if this gentleman (and at his age especially) might suffer from dementia therefore causing him to "forget" to pay bills. And without outside monitoring (family, friends, community agencies) a situation like this could arise at any time. I've met many individuals that can physically manage their activities of daily living, but frequently fail to maintain their physical environments or medical needs.

 

It seems to me that if he indeed left a large sum of money to a local hospital, that he might not have family to assist and monitor his environment and as an adult, unless a community agency/individual was knowledgeable of his situation and willing to provide the care, his daily needs might not have been maintained.

 

Whatever the situation, this is sad!:cry:

[GaViking]

Great post eccheer. Until you deal with an elderly family member and assisting them with things that they used to be able to handle on their own you will never know.