SOS - helping parent dig out of financial mess
TLDR: Just discovered Dad is bleeding money to a mix of fraud and bad choices. Where do I start?
Just helped 85-year-old dad moved to assisted living. He has experienced sudden vision loss and cognitive decline, and I just got access to his credit card account. What a mess! He's paying thousands of dollars a month -- political contributions, subscriptions he doesn't use, fraud/scams--I'm just starting to figure it out.
Good news: Dad will be cooperative and is grateful for the help. Bad news: I'm overwhelmed and have no idea where to start. Dad doesn't remember any of his passwords, including for his email address. For the non-fraud expenses, he doesn't get paper statements so the only reason we know they exist is his credit card bill.
Where do I start? I am tempted to close out the credit card accounts, which will stop the immediate payments but could trigger other consequences. Then start calling these places. But without username and passwords, how do I gain access? Any advice welcome, please be specific. Thanks.