Dear LPG, 

It seems a silly thing to say and most of us oldies will pop up on some official list somewhere, but I recently came across someone who is now a bit worried about this very question.  I have changed her story somewhat, but the result is the same… 

A few years ago, her granddaughter while a student came to stay.  I have no doubt that we all know someone who has been through that experience, and in a day and age when finding alternative accommodation is not the easiest thing to do, spending a few days with grandma is one way to go.   It was just going to be for a few days until the situation was sorted at first, but her granddaughter made the transition to carer quite quickly, and her grandmother enjoyed the company after a few years of living alone.

The problem is that there is no actual official proof that she has lived with her grandmother for quite a few years now, because they never got around to making sure that there was any documentation.  They have spent lots of time not bothering to update the electoral role, the house is completely paid for, and all the bills are addressed to Grandma.  The younger of the two never learnt to drive, even her mobile phone is ‘pay as you go’ and still has her previous address on it. She finished studying but has found quite enough to do without finding a job since she moved back in, and her grandmother has gradually become a little less independent and more reliant on her.  You could say that she is now an unofficial carer as she has never declared herself as such.  

Now, as she is getting older, grandma is thinking about making sure that her granddaughter still has a home when the inevitable happens and they are working on adding her name to some of the bills and especially the electoral role (even though they have no interest in voting anymore),

As I mentioned, I have changed the names and some of the circumstances in my version of the story that I have told, but it does have a moral.  

The point of the story is an attempt to ask all readers who have anything like a vaguely similar story to tell that it might be time to put a little proof of address in place before it is needed.  Add yourself to the electoral register even if you don’t like to vote, make sure that at least one utility bill includes each adult living in the home on it etc.  Make sure that you are officially seen to be living where you live… 

IB, Dulwich 

IB offers a little information that might help.  

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