I’m 76, live alone, have no family and am too poor to even run a fridge – I leave my will out every night in case I die
A FORMER shipyard worker has revealed how he’s so poor he can’t afford to run a fridge – and that he leaves his will out every night in case he dies.
John Foster, 76, from Sunderland appeared on Channel 4 Dispatches programme Britain’s Forgotten Pensioners and revealed how the cost of living crisis had stretched his finances so far that he couldn’t afford to pay his energy bills, so sits in the dark at night.
The pensioner also revealed how he has turned off his fridge and leaves his milk carton near the door to keep it cool.
But in more tragically, John – who still lives in the house he used to live with his parents and two siblings – leaves his will and funeral arrangements out every night in case he dies.
He revealed in the documentary: “I’m completely on my own. I haven’t even got any relations anywhere, I’m just here, that’s it. Existing.”
Explaining why he lays out his funeral plans and will on the sofa each evening, he said: “I started doing this when my sister died.
“I’ve got no family – they’ve all gone – so there’s nobody to do things like this.
“If anyone comes into the house this is the first thing they’re going to see. They will phone the funeral directors, they’ll come out and everything will be done.”
John’s parents died within 27 hours of each other, while his brother passed away four days before his 41st birthday and his sister died five years ago.
He continued: “I’ve got no family, never been married, no kids. Family, if you lose one or two it’s bad enough, but if you lose all of them you’re completely on your own and it’s just a nightmare.”
Thankfully, John was shown receiving help from Karen Noble, who works for local charity Pallion Action Group.
She helped him gain access to benefits so he could afford utility bills and proper meals, amounting to an extra £131.25 every week.
John had no idea he was entitled to such benefits and it means he can stop using food banks.
He said: “I’m getting a lot more money now, which I’ve been entitled to for a few years and I didn’t know, I had no idea.”
Karen added: “I know that there’s lots of information online, but we all know older people who don’t go online.
“In John’s case, if somebody had sat, when his sister had passed away and was on his own, had asked what was going on, then that would have highlighted that he needed some additional support.
“Nobody did, so whose responsibility is it and how are we going to solve it? I think it’s shocking that we’ve got a 76-year-old man who could have been getting an additional benefit for ten years and nobody picked it up.”
Britain’s Forgotten Pensioners: Dispatches is available on Channel 4.