You are two hours away, or two hundred. Your mum’s printer has stopped working, or her email will not open, or something has appeared on the screen saying her computer is infected and she needs to ring a number urgently. So she rings you instead. You try to talk her through it, badly, because you cannot see what she can see, and twenty minutes later you are both fed up.
This is one of the most common reasons people get in touch with me, and it is almost never the son or daughter’s fault. Fixing a computer down the phone, for someone who is not confident with it, is genuinely difficult even if you work in technology for a living. You are missing the one thing you need most, which is the screen.
First, work out which of the three problems it actually is
They need quite different answers, and people often buy the wrong one.
- A one off fault. The printer will not print. The laptop will not turn on. The television has lost the streaming apps. This wants a single visit from someone competent, and then it is done.
- A confidence gap. Nothing is broken. She just does not feel safe doing things on her own, so she avoids them. This wants a patient hour or two, repeated occasionally, and it is the one that changes people’s lives the most.
- Something worrying. A pop up demanding money, an unexpected payment, a call claiming to be the bank. This is urgent and it is a different conversation. If you think money has actually moved, ring her bank first, on the number printed on her card, before you ring anyone else.
If you are not sure which one you are dealing with, ask her to describe what she sees on the screen rather than what she thinks is wrong. What people report and what is actually happening are often two different things, and the description is usually enough to tell them apart.
Check what free help is available first
I would rather tell you this than have you find out afterwards. There is decent free help in the UK, and for some situations it is the right answer.
- AbilityNet runs a free service for older and disabled people, including home visits from DBS checked volunteers. It is genuinely good. The catch is that it depends on a volunteer being available in that area, so there is no guaranteed date.
- Age UK branches run digital skills sessions through their Digital Champions programme, usually in groups or as part of a befriending visit.
- Libraries. Wiltshire Council runs free one to one digital support appointments in libraries across the county, and many other councils do something similar.
Those work well for learning and for small things. Where they struggle is speed, continuity and anything substantial. If your mum needs someone this week rather than whenever a volunteer comes free, or she needs the same person to come back regularly so she is not explaining herself from scratch every time, that is where paying somebody makes sense.
What to look for in whoever you book
Whether it is me or somebody else, these are the things worth asking about.
- A published hourly rate, and whether there is a call out fee on top. Some local firms charge sixty or eighty pounds an hour and then add a call out charge, which can nearly double a one hour visit. Ask for the total, not the rate.
- What happens if they cannot fix it. A no fix no fee policy tells you they are confident, and it takes the risk off you.
- Whether they will explain it to her, not to you. This matters more than anything technical. If she does not understand what happened, you will be having the same phone call again in a fortnight.
- Whether they are vetted. Which? Trusted Traders and the Trading Standards backed Buy With Confidence scheme both vet the businesses they list. For someone letting a stranger into their home, that is worth checking.
- Whether they will sell her something. A lot of older people end up with a new laptop they did not need. Ask directly.
Set it up so you are not the middleman
This is the part people skip, and it is the part that saves you the most.
Book the first visit yourself if that is easier, but make sure whoever comes leaves her with a way to get hold of them directly. If every future problem has to route through you, you are still the help desk, just with an extra step. The point of arranging this is that the next time something goes wrong she can pick up the phone herself.
Two other things worth doing at the same time. Ask for written notes in plain English, left with her, covering what was done and any passwords that changed. And ask whether remote support is possible for small things, because a fifteen minute screen share often solves what would otherwise be a wasted trip for everyone.
What it costs, roughly
In this part of the country you should expect somewhere between fifty and ninety pounds an hour, plus a call out fee from some firms. I charge fifty pounds an hour with no call out fee, and if a job genuinely takes me five minutes I do not charge for it at all, because I would rather have the relationship than the five minutes.
Most one off faults are an hour. A proper sit down session, where somebody goes through the things that have been quietly worrying them for months, is usually two.
If you want to sort it this week
I cover Wiltshire from Corsham, and Berkshire and south Buckinghamshire from Burnham. I visit at home, I do not use jargon, and I am happy to speak to you first and to her second if that is easier to arrange.
Ring me on 07816 970 768, or send me a message and tell me roughly what is going on. If it is something I can talk her through in five minutes on the phone, I will do that and there will be nothing to pay.