We have a handful of elderly folks who have court ordered conservators or guardians due to severe memory issues. In some situations, the guardians or conservators have chosen to close the ward's account with us for various reasons. The issue is, there is a small but persistent group of these elders who are insistent that their accounts should be open and in their possession, due to not being able to remember the court proceedings around the guardianship.

We have a few people who call in several times a week to inquire on their account, accuse their conservators of stealing their money, threaten us with legal action, threaten to call the FBI, etc. It's like groundhog day, these are folks that can't remember that they called a couple hours before. One person called four times today to ask about the account. We have the accounts noted with call scripts and instructions to transfer calls to my department if it's unmanageable, but these calls still take up a not-insignificant amount of time that could be better used talking to people who would remember the interaction. I don't mean to sound callous, but this is getting silly.

Does anyone else have this kind of issue? How do you deal with it? Do you call the conservator and ask them to take action? Say whatever it takes to get off the phone as quickly as possible, or hang up on them? Just deal with it as "comes with the job" material?

Dementia is a cruel affliction. In most ways, it is more painful to family, friends, and service providers than to the sufferer himself/herself. You can't deal with a demented person in a rational manner because s/he lacks the mental capacity to act rationally. That is why someone else has assumed or been appointed the duty of handling the sufferer's affairs.

It's sad and may seem (as you say) callous, but the simple truth of the matter is that are wasting everyone's time when you engage in a business conversation with a person who suffers advanced dementia. If possible, block the number. If that's not possible, contact the guardian and see if it's possible to restrict calls from that end. If telephone technology can't provide a solution, instruct your staff to handle these calls quickly and decisively: "That account was closed. For more information, you will have to come to one of our offices. Goodbye." Click.

This is a legitimate and truthful response and there is almost no chance that the impaired former customer will be able to follow through and visit a branch. Should that happen, contact the guardian immediately.

Thank you, Richard, for "telling it like it is."

When my mother was declining into dementia with Alzheimer's, I was a joint owner on her checking account. Mom was still physically vital, and she often walked the mile to the bank and asked about her account (because I had taken the checkbook to prevent her from sending her monthly SSA payments off to every charity -- legit and otherwise -- that targeted her mailbox). The branch staff handled her with grace and compassion, and would let her cash a check when she wanted to for small amounts (and call me to let me know). They called me, too, when Mom stopped showing up, to make sure nothing had happened to her -- I had moved her into a secured assisted living facility when she started wandering the village -- and I am sure they were relieved to know she would not be dropping in any longer. I have always been thankful for their kindness and appreciative that they went the extra mile for her.

But Richard is right. It's not callous or unkind. It is simply the smart choice.

You may want to research ways to best communicate with people suffering from dementia. My husband works around many elderly people that suffer from this. Sometimes, when they become upset or fixated on something (like they have to leave the facility to get to a party, that one seems to be popular) the best approach is to change the subject. Ask them about something specific like what is the weather like today, mention an upcoming holiday, ask about something you know they are interested in, etc. I know it might take up time, but you may at least be able to comfort the person by getting their mind off the worries of their bank account.

I have to say that I would have more patience for this than I do for the client who calls about every 3 days wanting you to look up the balance on all 20 of their accounts, the maturity dates, interest rates, etc. when it is obvious they are only doing this to make sure all of the staff knows exactly how much money they have in our bank. The client who did this repeatedly is not in any way mentally impaired, she just feels entitled to waste staff time this way.

As a small community bank, we do encounter this issue. We assign the caller a specific employee so no matter who answer the call, they are to transfer the person to the same employee. We have found, for whatever reason, they don't won't to talk to the same person. They want a "new" person that may try to help them "recover" the money. This has put an end to a few of these instances, and the employee assigned to them knows the details and at least isn't starting from scratch. It is sad and my father is battling dementia so my heart goes out and as it progresses paranoia sets in. I have called family members, but there isn't much they can do either.

I was asked by another member to post the following in this thread. Don't know how helpful it would be for customers, though it might be...but may be helpful to those of you dealing with it personally. I have...and it's not a fun road...at all.

1. Never Argue, instead Agree
2. Never Reason, instead Divert
3. Never Shame, instead Distract
4. Never Lecture, instead Reassure
5. Never say "Remember", instead Reminisce
6. Never say "I told You", instead Repeat/Regroup
7. Never say "You Can't", instead do what they CAN
8. Never Command/Demand, instead Ask/Model
9. Never Condescend, instead Encourage
10. Never Force, instead Reinforce

Sounds like a list I could also use with my kids.

except for number 1

Maybe the call scripts the OP mentioned could be rewritten to incorporate some of Joker's insightful points.
If it truly is a big enough problem to warrant management, it might be beneficial to reach out to someone in your county's social services area. A short presentation in-house could lead the way to both better understanding and handling of something that's currently being perceived as an 'issue.'

There but for the Grace of God go I.

Thank you all so much for the wonderful responses. I think our (super kind) call center staff is reticent to treat these calls like anything other than a "normal" phone call (i.e. trying to logic the person through it) but the fact of the matter is, they're not, and there are some great suggestions here to make uncomfortable calls easier for both sides in this situation. Best wishes especially to those of you with loved ones who have dementia. It's such an awful affliction.

True!

As I was reading this, I was thinking that I recently saw a list on FB, thanks Joker, that's the same list. I made a picture for my phone so I could easily refer to it as often as needed. My mom is starting to have some dementia issues and it is really hard as she lives with me and I am the only support system she has.

I second the suggestion to have someone from social services, mental health, etc to come in and talk to your employees. Even those employees that are not dealing with the customers will benefit. Most of us are going to be dealing with these issues in our own families and circle of friends sooner or later.