LAKE COUNTY, Fla. – A matchmaking service that charges clients thousands of dollars to be set up on dates entered into a contract with an 80-year-old man whose family claims he suffers from dementia and severe memory loss, documents provided to News 6 show.
Blake Mooney, who discovered the nearly $8,500 charge on his elderly father’s credit card from The Matchmaking Company, contacted News 6 for help after he said the company initially ignored his requests for a refund.
“He can’t go on a date,” said Mooney. “He’s got dementia.”
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Like Mooney, many adult children find themselves dealing with the financial fallout of costly purchases made by elderly parents who no longer have full mental acuity.
Those purchase agreements are often legally binding.
“For the family members, you have to understand that, absent some court order, there’s going to be that freedom to enter into contracts,” said attorney Raymond Traendly with TK Law. “There’s going to be that freedom to swipe that credit card and make those purchases. And then it becomes your burden to prove that your family member didn’t have capacity at that time.”
Mooney speculates that his father, a widower, may have stumbled upon The Matchmaking Company’s website, which states its mission is to “create long-lasting, authentic, and loving relationships” for clients.
News 6 is not identifying Mooney’s father out of respect for his medical privacy.
“Unfortunately, when I try to speak with him about it, he doesn’t recall everything,” Mooney told News 6.
Uber receipts confirm that Mooney’s father took a rideshare from his assisted living facility in Lake County to The Matchmaking Company’s Winter Park office in June.
Less than a half hour after arriving at the office, the elder Mooney reportedly signed a contract that entitled him to 12 “introductions”, or dates, for $8,495.
Although Mooney said his father’s dementia may not be immediately noticeable to people who first meet him, his dad’s mental challenges eventually become apparent.
“Once [the conversation] starts involving financial situations, numbers, and dates, he would have no idea,” said Mooney. “You could call him right now and ask him what the date is and he wouldn’t be able to recall it for you.”
On application paperwork submitted to The Matchmaking Company, Mooney’s 80-year-old father listed his birth year as 1922, which would have made him 102 years old.
Representatives from The Matchmaking Company did not respond to multiple emails from News 6 inquiring about the company’s business practices and its interactions with Mooney’s father.
Traendly said some companies will inquire whether a customer comprehends the terms of a contract before it is executed.
“You might ask them questions about their capacity to make sure they understand what they’re signing,” said Traendly. “They may deny it, but at least at that point you’ve done some due diligence in avoiding what could be a potentially disastrous legal situation.”
Mooney, who lives in North Carolina, said he called the phone number for The Matchmaking Company listed on his dad’s credit card statement but was connected to an automated voicemail system.
He then located other phone numbers for The Matchmaking Company, an Oklahoma-based business that has satellite offices all over the country.
“I lost count when I hit 51 phone calls in the first two days,” said Mooney.
On the few occasions that Mooney spoke with company representatives, he said they showed no interest in learning about his dad’s mental condition or initiating a refund.
“There’s nobody to talk to,” said Mooney. “There’s nobody who can help you in any way other than [asking] ‘Would you like to sign up? Would you like to have some matchmaking done for you?’”
A News 6 reporter visited the shared workspace in Winter Park where The Matchmaking Company meets with clients.
A company representative declined to answer any questions from News 6.
A short time later, Mooney said he was contacted by the company’s general counsel, Chase Overstreet.
According to Mooney, Overstreet was initially reluctant to cancel his dad’s contract.
“He stated, ‘Well, I called your father, and he says he doesn’t have dementia’,” Mooney told News 6.
Fortunately, Mooney had previously obtained power of attorney that gave him legal authority to serve as his father’s representative in certain matters including financial affairs.
“You want to have a conversation with your loved ones early and often,” said Traendly. “The best time to do a power of attorney is before there’s any dispute about a lack of capacity.”
After providing power of attorney documents to The Matchmaking Company, Mooney said he was given a copy of the contract his father had signed.
According to that contract, Mooney’s father had missed a three-day window to cancel and receive a full refund.
However, the contract could also be canceled “if, upon a doctor’s order, you cannot physically receive the services,” documents show.
Mooney later sent The Matchmaking Company a letter from his father’s doctor that stated the 80-year-old “has been diagnosed with dementia” and “experiences significant cognitive impairment that affects memory, reasoning, and judgment.”
“After comprehensive evaluation and clinical assessments, it is my professional medical opinion that he lacks the capacity to make sound decisions regarding the use of Match (sic) Company services,” the doctor wrote.
After receiving the doctor’s letter, Mooney said The Matchmaking Company agreed to terminate the contract with his father and issue a nearly $6,000 refund.
The Matchmaking Company did not respond to questions from News 6 inquiring why it kept about $2,500 of the elder Mooney’s money.
“This would have financially killed him,” Mooney said, who was happy to get most of the money back despite believing his father should have received a full refund. “It would have been bad had we not caught it. It would have been very bad.”
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