Somewhere in the group text, someone will say that renting is cheaper than buying. You may be the one who has to check that claim. The weekly rate is only the first line, and the real total is built from the lines below it.

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Start with the length of need

Write down how long your mother will need the item. A short recovery window and a long, steady need point in opposite directions. If nobody can name an end point, say so in the thread. That gap is a line item too, because a rental keeps running until someone ends it.

Count every add-on before you say yes

Ask for each fee in writing. Delivery, setup, pickup, late return, deposit, and any charge for a missing part all belong in the total. Ask whether a second trip costs extra, and whether the supplier's pickup window is a time you or your mother can actually keep.

Find out who pays when it breaks

Ask what happens if the item fails in the first week, in the middle, and at the end. Ask who makes the repair call, who drives the item back, and whether a replacement is sent while the broken one is fixed. If the answer is that you will handle it, that work belongs in the comparison as hours, not as a favor.

Check what insurance covers, and under which rule

Coverage depends on the plan, the type of item, and whether the supplier is one the plan accepts. Call the number on the card and ask four things: whether this item is covered, whether it is covered as a rental or a purchase, what the doctor must document, and what happens if the plan's rules change partway through. Write down the reference number and the name of the person you spoke with.

Set the purchase route next to the rental route

Ask whether the item can be resold or returned, and under what condition. Ask whether a used item comes with a cleaning and inspection, and whether it carries a warranty. Keep the receipt and the warranty sheet in one folder so the paperwork is not reconstructed later.

Put the decision on one page

Make three columns: the rental total for the expected length of need, the purchase total including resale or return value, and who pays each line. Then bring the page to the family. The sibling who did the calls and the waiting now has a document that shows the work, and everyone is deciding from the same numbers.