STRAIGHT TO THE POINT

MY NEIGHBOUR moved into a care home after falling ill. I paid her Virgin Media telephone bill up to the time she moved into the home and then asked the firm to cancel her account. She has now died, but Virgin is still sending bills. I don’t know what to do. R. B., Chingford, East London. Virgin Media says it was unable to close the account because you had not sent a power of attorney notice to prove you have permission to act on your neighbour’s behalf.

it finally closed the account in September, when it was notified your neighbour had died, but it did not clear the outstanding balance, which is why you continued to receive bills. Virgin apologises and has now cancelled the debt. IN 2015, I had a will written by a self- employed solicitor. He recently phoned me to say that he is no longer practising. Will the document still be valid? L. S., East Sussex. EMILY DEANE, of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners, says you shouldn’t encounter any problems unless your solicitor is also the executor of your will and thus in charge of administering the estate. if this is the case, you may want to update your will with the name of a different executor. This can be done by another solicitor. SOMEONE used my credit card last month to make what appears to be a hotel booking. Should I report this matter to the police? E. L., by email. you should first report the fraudulent transaction to your bank, which will take steps to ensure your account is safe.

Banks will usually refund such unauthorised transactions, as long as you have not been careless with your personal details. you can also report the incident to action Fraud by calling 0300 123 2040 or online at actionfraud.police.uk