Steve Klein tried to protect his 103-year-old father from exploitation as Fred Klein's memory began to decline.

Steve took over his father's bank accounts, bills and power of attorney. He took him to visit high-quality assisted-living facilities.

But Fred — a former World War II pilot who flew more than 60 bombing runs over the South Pacific and swam competitively until he was a centenarian — refused to move out of the Tucson retirement community where he lives alone, drives his own golf cart and dates a former beauty queen.

So Steve, who lives in Scottsdale, and a troop of Fred's friends try their best to keep an eye on him instead.

Things were going well until a few months ago, Steve said, when Fred decided to spruce up his 20-year-old home.

Fred called Orangutan Home Services, a repair company he had used for more than a decade, to inspect his air conditioning. He didn't remember to consult Steve.

The day of the inspection, Fred agreed to pay more than $24,000 to buy two new units and a 10-year labor warranty.

Without access to credit cards or checks, Fred took out a 12-year loan that Orangutan offered through a financing company. If he made the minimum payments, he would pay nearly $18,000 in interest, documents show.

"I don't want to leave (Steve and his brother) a pig in a poke. I want to leave them something that's in top shape," Fred said. "But when Steve got in on the act, things changed. I found out I had been not smart about this."

Steve said that he was furious when he learned about the purchase. He believes Orangutan took advantage of his father and overcharged him.

Fred "is not competent to sign contracts anymore," Steve, 70, said. "As you can see, he can hold a conversation. He can get to the country club. He's fine in those respects. But contract-signing and critical faculties are not his strong point anymore."

Orangutan general manager Jeff Leader said employees had no reason to believe Fred couldn't handle the purchase.

"(We've) been dealing with the person for 11 years. There's nothing posted in the house. This gentleman has made plenty of decisions in the past with nobody saying anything," Leader said. "He all of a sudden makes a bigger purchase, and they start complaining."

Balancing a parent's desire to handle their own affairs with their declining physical or mental capabilities is difficult for many children, said Marc Pulsifer, a Tempe lawyer who deals with estate planning and business contracts. There's no "bright line," he said.

"It's truly intractable because as a caregiver and a loved one, you don't want to take your father or mother's independence away. It's important to their quality of life," Pulsifer said. "And at the same time, you want to protect them."

What could the company have done?

Steve argues Orangutan should have asked Fred if he needed to call a family member.

"When you walk to the front door and there's a gentleman with a cane, who looks conservatively 90 ... I would ask them to exercise good judgment," Steve said. "The topic should come up: 'Who handles your business affairs?' That would have been a simple question."

After the visit from the repair company, Steve asked his father's doctor to assess Fred's cognitive ability.

The physician signed a letter stating tests showed Fred is "not competent to enter into business contracts on his own without the assistance of his son or other professional advice."

Leader said Orangutan employees do ask about involving a third party if a customer clearly has memory problems, employees notice a nurse caring for a customer, or adult children have already alerted the company that they handle the finances.

But Orangutan's general manager said Fred had none of these red flags.

"The technicians are not doctors," Leader said. "How are we supposed to know? We can only judge so much."

Carol Soderquist, a Chandler family law attorney, said it's hard to prove a company should have known a customer was incapable of signing a contract.

But "a reputable company would ask," Soderquist said. "If there was any doubt whatsoever, they would make sure and confirm the person was lucid by taking notes. 'I asked the father if he understands what this provision in the contract meant. He reflected back such and such.' "

However, being elderly is not the same as being incapacitated, said Pulsifer, the Tempe lawyer.

"I can imagine a 103-year-old fellow or woman who wants to live alone and is perfectly capable of entering into the contract you described," he said.

"The next question is: Does the fellow, not just because he's old, does he appear to be incapacitated? Can he hold a conversation? If you or I were talking to him, would he appear to be cogent?" Pulsider said. "Especially if the company has a history with him and has done business with him before in good faith, if the fellow sitting in front of you appears to be cogent, I don't see a problem."

Allegations of high prices and questionable workmanship

Among the reasons Steve believes Orangutan exploited his father:

The company charged a higher price than other companies.

The Arizona Registrar of Contractors found problems with the workmanship.

Fred paid nearly $19,700 for two high-end Trane air-conditioning units. Three companies provided lower quotes to Steve and The Arizona Republic.

Samson and Sons Heating & Cooling in Tucson gave an estimate of about $14,000 to install similar units from another brand.

American Home Water and Air in Phoenix quoted about $14,200 to install the same Trane units.

Family Air in Tucson said it would have charged close to $19,000 for the same units.

"That's a lot of money for what they did," Brad Steinbrecher, of American Home Water and Air, said. "This is exactly what is wrong with the industry: These commission-based companies that are gouging people."

In addition, Steve noted about half a dozen people have posted complaints on Yelp and the Better Business Bureau website accusing Orangutan of up-selling elderly relatives. And the Arizona Attorney General fined Orangutan $150,000 for making thousands of illegal telemarketing calls in 2017.

Orangutan's general manager says he did not overcharge Fred for the air-conditioning units.

"They're not overly priced. They're good units," Leader said.

Orangutan may charge more than smaller companies, but it has higher overhead because the company provides better service, he said.

"The guy out there with one or two trucks, is he going to be answering your call on the Fourth of July? He might not," Leader said. "I'm never going to be the cheapest guy on the block."

After Steve complained to the Arizona Registrar of Contractors, a state inspector found 13 areas where Orangutan's installation needed to be corrected.

The items included a gas leak, improper support and incomplete duct work, according to letters from the agency to Orangutan.

The company made repairs. At a follow-up visit, a state inspector found three items hadn't been corrected.

Orangutan's work on the air-conditioning units "fails to meet minimum workmanship standards," state regulators told the company.

"It was a completely botched installation," said Steve, who previously owned a construction company. "That's the largest areas of deficiency I've ever seen on a registrar inspection."

Many issues with Orangutan's work were minor and wouldn't have affected the air-conditioning units' performance, Leader said.

"Some of the things are kind of subjective," Leader said. "Half that list probably were things that never would have been needed to be done."

"Nobody is going to do it perfectly 100%," he added.

A settlement, and lessons learned

Even though Steve controls his father's bank accounts, he wasn't notified when Fred applied for the loan.

That's because Fred's credit line wasn't frozen. If it had been, Steve could have received a notification allowing him to approve or disapprove a credit request.

"This one I didn't see coming," he said. "I thought any transaction would be run through me. This one wasn't."

Steve hired a lawyer to negotiate a settlement.

"Am I saying we're blameless? I'm actually not," Steve said. "We want Orangutan to get paid because the units are on the roof."

After weeks of back and forth, and a call from The Republic, the two sides agreed to drop the warranty and charge $12,000 for the units — half of the total original bill.

Orangutan will probably lose money on the deal, but after 26 years in business, the company wants the family to be happy, Leader said.

"I don't know many companies that would take half the price off," he said. "We've gone above and beyond."

Fred said he's learned to talk with his son before any large purchase.

"I used to be famous for my memory like an elephant. But age seems to have changed that. And when I listen to what I did, I hate to look stupid," Fred said. "I'm not going to do this again — that's the lesson. If I get in on any expense, Steve is in on the act."

How to freeze an elderly parent's credit

If your parent is aging and you are their guardian, conservator or have power of attorney, you can request a free credit freeze for to protect them, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

Credit freezes, also known as security freezes, restrict access to the person's credit file, making it harder for identity thieves to open new accounts in their name or for a parent to open a credit line without the child knowing.

What to do:

Contact the three nationwide credit reporting agencies to request a credit freeze: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

Provide the person's name, address, date of birth, Social Security number and other personal information to verify their identity.

Provide information to verify your identity, as well as a court order, power of attorney or other documents to confirm your authority over the person.

Request that notifications on the credit account come to you.

If you request a freeze online or by phone, the agency must place the freeze within one business day. If you make a request by mail, the agency must place or lift the freeze within three business days after it receives your request.

Each credit bureau will provide you with a unique PIN or password. Keep the PIN or password in a safe place. You will need it if you choose to lift the freeze.

If you request a freeze be lifted, the agency must lift it within one hour. You also can lift the freeze temporarily for free.

Credit reporting agencies

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Consumer reporter Rebekah L. Sanders investigates issues of fraud and abuse involving businesses, health-care entities and government agencies. Contact her at rsanders@azcentral.com or follow her on Twitter at @RebekahLSanders.

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