Careline subscriptions, are they worth the money.

[Anothershittydayinparadise]

Does anyone's elderly parents use a careline service?

Are they any good, are they responsive when called upon and can anyone recommend a good one?

They are literally lifelines (emergency services person speaking). They are all pretty much identical in my experience, all about the deal on the day. Pendants can be worn round the neck or on the wrist; some come with an automatic fall option. Best paired with a keysafe.

Yesterday I assisted someone as a result of their careline going off. Without their careline I do not like to think of what would have happened to them. Highly recommend.

Thank you olderbutwiser. We have recently added a keysafe for the carer so the careline will be the next step.

I am going to try and sort something tomorrow.

Absolutely worth it, see if your local council provide one. Sometimes called community alarm or care and response.

Do your homework. I work in a Polics Control Room and the one which is the largest in our area merely phones 999 when someone activates their alarm. They don't send staff out. They just call 999 and expect a welfare check. Depending on how busy we are it could take long enough before we have a free resource.

Find out exactly their protocol and what you're paying for

It’s yes from me. But the person its for needs to commit to wearing the pendant or whatever device they choose. No good if they don’t/wont wear it. My late DM had one and used it a fair bit.

Yes they are great. The one my mum has calls a list of people first (not 999) unless its her smoke detector (which is connected to the careline) then they get the fire brigade out and then call the list. It has been invaluable for my mum to carry on living independently.

We used one called Ostara for my dad in the NE of England. They put their own key safe in and will only give that code to emergency services and their staff as families were using the key safes and not putting the keys back!

Try PPP Taking Care.

If your parents have eligible social care needs then the tech will be free via the local authority in England as it's preventative.

DM had a pendant alarm that went though to the local community support volunteers, who were first aid trained and had lifting equipment, and were on call 24/7. Smoke detectors went through to the fire brigade.

Very much worth it - it was installed through community support and administered by the Council. Cost about £50 a quarter.

The local authority one my parents have is excellent. They don't just call an ambulance (often not necessary) until they've responded and attended if required. They have a team of responders who do this. I'd pay ten times what I do now, for the peace of mind this gives me as I'm two hundred miles away.

Check with the county council website- they may have recommendations for the area.

Carer here with 30 years experience of delivering care to the elderly in their own homes.

Yes, they are worth it.

Unfortunately the community run one local to my mother who have local staff who could respond to calls weren't accepting any new customers when I was trying to arrange one.

So I ended up with the PP Taking Care one, where you supply the names of local friends and family who could respond. The control centre also has the keysafe number and would call the emergency services if they felt it necessary. Mum hasn't had to use it in earnest as yet but tests it every few months as instructed and they seem to respond quickly.

It's a great weight off my mind as I live at the other end of the country. Luckily I was visiting when she fell and broke her hip and we had to wait six hours for an ambulance - I'd hate to think of what would have happened if I hadn't been there as she lives alone and without the alarm in a similar situation she could be lying on the floor for many hours before anyone was even aware that she was in trouble.

Thank you everyone. I have asked the local council but they are no longer taking on additional clients as the service is soon to close which is sad as it has been running for 40 years.

Looks like we will have to find a privately run one.

I’ve just set my dad up with one. Got the information from Age U.K. site, it’s a company called Taking Care.
After the initial setting up it seems to be £26.99 a month.
He’s only just got it, so no incidents have happened yet to test it, but they seem a nice company to deal with and it was easily sorted out

Mum is also with Taking Care, but I think we pay a little bit more ?

It may be because we went with the option where she can speak to them directly by pressing the button on the pendant. i think they also offered a slightly cheaper option where she would have to go to the main control box and press a button on that to speak to someone, but to me that seemed to be not very effective as if she was in trouble 9 times out of 10 she wouldn't be able to get to and reach the box. It would be ok for someone who is bedbound though.

I think you can self-declare that you need the alarm because of a disability and they don't then add VAT.

Personal Alarms for Seniors - Approved by Which? | TakingCare

This was a god send while my parents were alive. But once they died, cancelling the package was a complete nightmare! No compassion, no care - only profits!

Paid on December and both parents died in the next 7 months, I contacted Careline365 informing of them of the deceased parties (1st Aug). They told me no partial refund, I said I do not need the service, they said to cancel when I get the renewal.
No renewal, no invoice just withdrew £279 out my bank of Friday 19th December, I spoke with their cancallations team who are on a 10 minute wait on a Monday morning at 9:03 - says alot! Who confirmed that I had requested a returns number in August when they had been informed of the deaths and that is should be sent to me to return the kit. The agent could not answer why this was not done.

PROFIT - PROFIT - PROFIT never mind the double loss I've had to deal with this year.