Instead, it had funded trips to Phoenix and expensive steakhouses and a life my parents enjoyed while they told me my own life was too depressing to visit.
I clicked cancel.
A confirmation box appeared: Are you sure you want to cancel this recurring transfer?
“I’m sure,” I whispered to the screen, and clicked yes.
Transfer canceled.
Next, the car. Two years ago, my parents had needed a car—their old one had finally died, and their credit was terrible. Too many missed payments, too much debt, too many financial decisions that had caught up with them. So I’d helped them buy a used Honda Accord, putting it in my name, and taking on the monthly payment. Another $340 a month on top of everything else.
I logged into the auto loan website and navigated to customer service. Found the number. Glanced at the clock—8:52 p.m. on a Saturday. No one would be there, but I could leave a message, start the process.
I dialed.
To my surprise, someone answered—a young man with a customer service voice. “Mountain West Auto Loans, this is Brandon speaking. How can I help you?”
“I need to remove authorized users from my account and arrange for vehicle return.”
“Okay, I can help with that. Can I have your account number?”
I read it off. Waited while he pulled up my information.
“And who are the authorized users you’d like to remove?”
“Margaret and Robert Chen.”
“And they’re currently in possession of the vehicle?”
“Yes.”
“Okay. I’ll process the removal immediately. As for vehicle return, they have fourteen days to return it to any of our partner dealerships, or we can arrange for repossession if they refuse. After that, if you’d like to keep the vehicle, we can update the loan to only have you as an authorized driver, or we can facilitate a sale to settle the loan.”
“Whatever gets it out of their possession fastest.”
“Understood. I’m noting that in your account. You should receive an email confirmation within the hour, and the authorized users will receive a notification that they no longer have legal access to the vehicle.”
“Perfect. Thank you.”
Next, the cell phones. They were on my family plan—had been since their previous carrier cut them off for non-payment two years ago. I’d added them to our plan to help out, another $120 per month.
I logged into our carrier’s website. Found the manage lines section. Selected my mother’s line, my father’s line. Clicked discontinue service.
Are you sure you want to discontinue these lines? This action cannot be undone.
Yes. I was sure.
Click.
Lines will be disconnected at the end of the current billing cycle: October 31st.
Not good enough.
I clicked for immediate disconnection instead, accepting the early termination fees. Whatever it cost was worth it.
