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My parents both have alzheimer's and the state has just taken away their driver's licenses, but they won't give up their car keys and said they are going to keep driving anyway. They have both gotten lost driving, and they have been declared incompetent as well as they can't handle finances. We are trying to get them into a memory care facility and hope to accomplish this soon (which is another topic, how to get them there), but until we do, we don't know if we should take the keys from them, sneak them away, take the car, or disable the car. They are in denial about having alzheimer's and think they are just fine.

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When my mother-in-law was told that she couldn't drive anymore because of her macular degeneration, she told me "that doctor took my drivers license and ripped it up right in front of me". Although he didn't actually rip it up, that's the way she saw it. It's a terrible blow to a person's independence when they can no longer drive. My son will have to pry the keys out of my cold dead hand I'm afraid. ha But I agree, remove the car. Out of sight, out of mind.
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When my husband could no longer drive I removed his car from the premises. My brother stored it at his place. There was too much for me to do all at once but when things settled down, I sold the car.

If you have POA and your parents are incompetent to make their own decisions, sell the car. If there are no qualified drivers in the house there is no reason to keep it there. Do whatever you have to do to get the keys. This is not about being nice to parents -- it is about potentially saving the life of some bystander.

My husband grieved the loss of his car and driving about a year. Don't expect this to be easy, but it is necessary.
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GOOD LUCK!!! Both my parents have Dementia. When the Dr. told my dad no more driving, he said ok. He was NOT happy about it but he did listen to the Dr. 6 months later after fighting with my mother the entire time after SEVERAL near head on collisiions, and a fractured spine, as of this date, a month now, she has not driven. I had to have the Dr. write on a RX that she was not allowed to drive or use the stove (we have had small fires). She fights us almost daily that she is sure she can drive and sees no reason that she can't. I am pretty much living with my parents full time so I am here if they need anything. BUT everyday is the same thing. She thinks she is ok. A never ending battle. If your parents are anything like my mother, taking the keys, disabling the car, wouldn't do any good. My mother would call someone to rekey the car or have a mechanic come out to fix it. She even set up arrangements to take the test to see if she was competient to drive and GUESS WHAT??? She was having a good day, HE PASSED HER!! He told us that he hoped that if she was having a bad day she wouldn't drive. I told him that was the problem, she NEVER thought she was having a bad day! All I can say is good luck!! Hang in there. It is a fulltime job that is forsure. And a word of warning, they will lie, and sneak around to get what they want. You can't trust someone with dementia. Hugs to you.
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