Retired secondary school teacher John Wiscombe from Dorset died in July 2021, at the age of 91. His son, Robert was preparing to deal with end of life admin for the first time and had no idea where to begin.
After contacting one utility company himself and receiving poor customer service and little empathy for his bereavement, he searched the internet to find resources on how to notify providers. Although he found advice columns and other services, Robert decided to connect with Settld after reading how co-founders Vicky and Julie Wilson took their own experience of bereavement to help others.
“Settld felt more personal. The form was straightforward, the team were helpful and everything was done very smoothly. I was very impressed.”
With one phone call from the customer care team at Settld providing advice and clarity, Robert felt a weight had lifted off his shoulders.
I didn’t know what to do about dealing with the utilities. And that’s when the phone call from Settld came and where everything was explained. I was given great advice and provided with options to allow me to make changes on my account myself. The team were also happy to make those changes for me. And then everything just went through absolutely smoothly with bills, etc. There were no problems at all.”
The utility provider I contacted prior to using Settld were quite intimidating and had complex online forms which you had to fill in. You’re expected to find and take meter readings, which we submitted, and after that, the company came back saying ‘we need a photograph of the meter to confirm it.’ It was as if they didn’t believe the metre number and reading we’d given. I thought that was an appalling way to treat any customer, let alone a bereaved customer. Dreadful.
The immediate grief and horror has wound down significantly now, but at the time you’re definitely not thinking straight. Settld really did take the load off.
We are always pleased to support bereaved families with end-of-life admin. In Robert’s case, there were just two accounts to deal with but often it’s non-banking accounts which can result in the most stress due to long call waiting times. At Settld, we strive to streamline communication between bereaved families and service providers to speed up end of life admin. It is a rewarding feeling to be able to help those like Robert during his time of need.”
Gagan Gupta, Customer Relations Lead, Settld
