The contractor is ready. Dad wants the work. The signature box is waiting for you.
Do not start with the pen. Start with the question the contract is supposed to answer: who is buying this?
Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.
If Dad is the customer, the agreement, invoice, warranty, cancellation notice, and payment authorization should identify Dad as the customer. Your job may be to sign as his agent. That does not require you to become a co-customer, responsible party, or personal guarantor.
First, see whether Dad can sign
A power of attorney does not remove Dad from his own decisions. Missouri law does not allow an agent to use a power of attorney to force the principal to act, or to override an instruction Dad gave while able to direct the matter. That line appears in Missouri Revised Statutes section 404.710, as listed on the site’s Sources page.
If Dad understands the work, the price, and the basic obligation, ask whether he wants to sign his own contract. Refusing help is not the same thing as being unable to contract. A company employee’s impatience is not a capacity determination.
If Dad wants you to handle the signature, move to the document that gives you authority.
Read the power, not just its title
Find the complete power of attorney, including every signature page and amendment. Then check:
Is Dad the named principal? Are you the current agent, or only a successor who may act after someone else stops serving? Must two agents act together? Is the power effective immediately, or only after a stated event? Does it cover property, contracts, banking, or the particular transaction in front of you? Does it contain a termination date or another limit?
Missouri Revised Statutes section 404.710 gives an agent with qualifying general powers broad authority over the subjects granted, including authority to execute contracts. A limited power reaches only the subjects written into it. The words on Dad’s document control the starting point.
If the document is supposed to remain effective after incapacity, check that it actually contains durable-power language. Missouri Revised Statutes section 404.705 sets requirements for a Missouri durable power of attorney. Do not treat the word “POA” in a file name as proof that the document is durable or currently effective.
If the authority depends on a condition and you cannot tell whether that condition has been satisfied, stop. That is a document question for a Missouri lawyer, not something the salesperson gets to settle at the kitchen table.
Send the document before the appointment
Ask the company which office reviews powers of attorney. Send a copy through the company’s stated secure method and ask for written confirmation that it has been accepted for this transaction.
Ask three plain questions: What proof of authority do you require? How must the customer and agent be identified on the contract? Will any form ask me to accept personal payment responsibility?
Missouri law generally does not require a durable power of attorney to be recorded merely to be valid, although transactions affecting real estate can raise recording requirements. A company may still have a review procedure. Find that procedure before an installer, salesperson, or notary is standing in Dad’s house.
Inspect every place your name appears
Search the agreement for “responsible party,” “co-applicant,” “guarantor,” “jointly,” “severally,” “payment,” and “cardholder.” Check the order form, financing application, recurring-payment authorization, and completion certificate. The trouble is often in an attachment, not the main signature box.
If a form calls you the responsible party, ask what that term means in that contract. If it makes you responsible for payment, ask the company to identify Dad as the customer and you only as his agent. Do not rely on someone crossing out a line unless the company accepts the change and gives both you and Dad a complete signed copy.
Be especially careful with financing. Authority to arrange a purchase for Dad is not the same as agreeing to borrow money yourself. If the lender wants your income, credit application, Social Security number, or personal promise to pay, the transaction has moved beyond merely signing for Dad.
Make the signature show the job you are doing
Do not sign only your name beneath a box that identifies you as the customer. Do not casually copy Dad’s signature.
Ask the company to approve a signature block that identifies both people and your role. A clear format is:
Dad’s full legal name, by your full legal name, as attorney-in-fact.
Missouri Revised Statutes section 400.3-402 addresses representative signatures on negotiable instruments and emphasizes whether the signature clearly shows that the representative signed for an identified person. A home-repair contract is not automatically a negotiable instrument, but the practical lesson travels well: make the agency unmistakable.
Also make sure the customer name at the top matches Dad’s name. A good signature block cannot repair a contract that names you as the buyer throughout.
Build a file that survives the disagreement
Keep the final contract, all attachments, the power of attorney copy provided, the company’s acceptance, the approved signature format, invoices, proof of payment, and any cancellation or warranty terms. Give Dad a copy he can find.
This is not ceremony. If the invoice later lands in your name, you need a clean record showing that Dad bought the work and you acted only as his authorized agent.
If the amount is substantial, the authority is disputed, the transaction affects real estate, or the company insists that you personally guarantee payment, pause for advice from a Missouri lawyer. The site’s Local Help in St. Louis page is the practical place to start looking.
Your next move tonight
Put the unsigned contract beside the complete power of attorney. Circle every appearance of your name and Dad’s name. Then email the company one question: “Will you confirm in writing that Dad is the customer, I am signing only as his attorney-in-fact, and I have no personal payment obligation?” Do not sign until the paperwork gives the same answer.