It gets a bit easier to give them the runaround regarding deceased family members eventually, I now look forward to calls from scammers asking for my late wife, who died in 2000. “I’ll just give her a shout, (wait) I can’t find her I’m sorry, (wait) oh I remember she might have died…”
I had an interesting discussion with a real firm last year though. Not really a scam, but a proper letter arrived correctly addressed to her, and she was being invited to sign up to a craft beer membership scheme, so as I hadn’t much to do I rang their number and asked for the marketing manager, but was put through to the owner who did his own marketing, and asked him where his mailing list was obtained. He was, to be fair, quite embarrassed that he’d paid for what he thought was an accurate mailing list and was actually getting quite a few reports of people who were well beyond buying beer…
Your experience doesn't surprise me. If I've got nothing better to do I like to string them along, if they are speaking to me they are not bothering the vulnerable. My mother owned the house I now live in. I used to get calls here about loft insulation, double glazing or similar under some government scheme which either didn't exist, had closed or they weren't approved suppliers. They would start with their script, from time to time I would ask questions, sound enthusiastic, then when they came to the end, they would ask me what I thought, a few sentences later, I would ask why they had phoned me, I thought it was only for home owners (said about 10 minutes ago, they then asked to speak to the homeowner, which was when i told them that she was dead. (We were waiting for probate.) I know they had a job to do - but the government scheme they were quoting did not apply - I had looked it up the first time I received such a call. Others had recorded similar experience, the surveyor would come round quote an extortionate price then quote the discount through the government scheme, which was still a bit steep but sounded much better, then - bad news - customer not eligible for the scheme, but good news, manager will honour discounted rate if sign up now.
Mailing list out of date - they frequently are. An American company required my mother to give an e-mail address, so she gave mine. They have been repeatedly told that she has passed away, I now ask them for the cost of postage to the Elysium Fields, the happy hunting grounds, wherever. I don't get a reply! I could block the e-mails but I want to get it into their thick, stupid heads that writing to the deceased time and time again can be upsetting. I may have to give up. If your mother died in 2000, we've got twenty more years of this!