Couple, 98 and 89 years old, stranded in their own home for days due to stairlift problem

CTV’s Spencer Turcotte finds out why a couple from the Mount Forest area were stranded on one floor of their home for days.

A couple from Mount Forest, Ont. is sharing their frustration after they were left stranded on one floor of their home for four days.

They say that’s how long it took to get help with a broken stairlift.

Mac Love, 98, and his wife Shirley Love, 89, both benefit from their Acorn stairlift.

“Yes, it’s a necessary item,” said Mac, explaining that the pair have both had strokes and suffer from mobility challenges.

“The product is a really good product,” added Shirley. “We could not be here [in this house] without a stairlift.”

Without it, they don’t have access to much of their home.

“We went up to bed Friday night with it and during the night I had to get up. I went to come downstairs and the stairlift wouldn’t work,” Shirley explained.

She said she made repeated calls to Acorn, hoping they could send out a technician.

“I tried about every hour waiting for someone to phone back,” said Shirley, who explained the panic then began to set in. “I was almost beside myself. He hadn’t had breakfast. He hadn’t had his pills.”

Shirley realized she couldn’t leave her husband alone on the second floor. So together, they tried to make their way down the stairs.

“He has neuropathy so there’s no feeling in his feet,” said Shirley. “The last thing I needed to do was fall and then where are we?”

They did eventually get down, but there was no getting back up.

“He was able to sleep on this sofa here. It’s not the best, but he was comfortable. I slept over on the little love seat over there,” said Shirley, showing their sleeping arrangements while the stairlift was out of operation.

Mac said he did feel alone after sleeping next to his wife for all those years.

“We’ve always slept together,” he said.

A day went by, and another, and still no word from Acorn. It was frustrating for the couple who said Mac missed showers from personal support workers because he couldn’t get back upstairs.

The couple said the sale of the stairlift came with a promise of 365 day-a-year service and they pay for the $1,500/year warranty for technical problems like this.

A phone call eventually came, indicating a technician could come on Tuesday – a long way off from when the lift first broke down on Friday.

“The woman was very dismissive like, ‘We got all your messages,’” said Shirley. “For someone who is dependent upon it, it’s too long before you get some answers.”

CTV News contacted Acorn to ask why there was such a delay. A representative responded saying they were working on a resolution.

“They called this morning and they have offered to refund my money and if I don’t like the chairlift they would take it out free of charge. But it’s not about the money. The product is good,” said Shirley. “I’m just not happy with what happens when you have a problem.”

So while they are back up and running with their stairlift now, Mac and Shirley hope this prompts the company to respond faster when things break down, and to be a little kinder when seniors call scared and in search of answers.