Your parents could possibly manage on their own if your father could just remember to pay the bills on time and not end up having the electricity shut off once or twice a year for failure to pay. But when your mother depends on the electrical power to run her oxygen, you don't think you can take that chance any longer. Or perhaps your father died recently, leaving your mother alone. She is capable of caring for herself but has never been involved in paying bills and wouldn't know how.

Helping your parents remain independent and able to live in their own home sometimes takes some skill at supervising them without them knowing about it. And sometimes it simply means taking over some tasks they are incapable of handling, but that doesn't prevent them from living independently. Paying the bills or being notified when they are left unpaid is one of these tasks. Even from across the country, you can help out with these tasks. (Again, this task can be delegated to a sibling who cannot partake in the other aspects of care for your parents.)

While most bills can be redirected to your address for payment, not all are willing to notify others if the bill isn't paid. Utility companies are probably the most cooperative at helping set up a plan for notifying a relative in the event of nonpayment of a bill. Credit card companies will require a written letter of approval. Be sure to keep copies. It's probably easier just to take over paying these bills and having them sent directly to your home.

An alternative is to sit down with your parents once or twice a month and helping them pay the bills. This keeps them actively involved, and you have the piece of mind of knowing the gas or power won't be shut off anytime soon.

The tax assessor is usually cooperative with notification arrangements as well but isn't going to advertise it, whereas many times the utility bills have information on the bill or in fliers accompanying bills that tell you how to set up notifications.