Financial elderly abuse is a crime of theft and exploitation. It most often occurs when a close family member or caregiver takes advantage of an elderly individual’s decreasing mental and physical capacities to steal their property, assets, or belongings for their own use.

To protect yourself and your loved ones from this form of elderly abuse, you’ll want to understand exactly what financial elderly abuse is, how elder financial abuse happens, key signs of elder financial abuse, how to report elderly abuse, and finally how to prevent it.

Keep reading to learn each of these significant topics to protect the elderly individuals in your life. 

What Is Financial Elderly Abuse?

Financial elderly abuse, or elder financial abuse, is when a person steals money or valuable property from an elderly individual and uses it for their own gain. This can happen to elders with mental health impairments who are unable to prevent it, but it can also happen to any person of age.

Those who abuse the elderly victim financially are most often a close family member or friend who is charged with responsibility of the elderly’s possessions, but the perpetrator can also be:

  • Relatives

  • Spouses

  • Adult children

  • Trusted friends

  • Neighbors

  • Caregivers

  • Lawyers

  • Powers of attorney

  • Trustees

  • Guardians

  • Conservators

  • Nursing home staff

  • Strangers

How Does Elder Financial Abuse Happen?

Financial elderly abuse can happen when the perpetrator finds a way to claim ownership of the elderly’s assets. One way this can happen is by tricking the elderly into signing documents that transfers ownership of cars, homes, bank accounts, and investments into the name of the abuser.

Other methods of how elderly abuse can occur include:

  • Pressuring the elderly person to write the abuser into their will

  • Stealing the elderly’s checkbooks or credit cards

  • Scammers calling with a convincing story

  • Scammers may prey on memory loss victims by convincing them they’ve forgotten to pay a bill

  • Some scammers have used COVID-19 as a cover story

  • Scammers pretend the elderly individual has won a prize and demand their bank account information to “deposit it”

  • Pretending to be a relative who needs money

  • Pretending to be a bank examiner

  • Pretending to be a contractor for house repairs

Signs Of Elder Financial Abuse

If you are an elder or one’s close relative, it may be difficult to recognize the signs of elder financial abuse at first, but it’s important to watch out for them. Some warning signs include checks or bank statements that go to the perpetrator, forgeries on legal documents, and missing property.

There are quite a few signs of elderly financial abuse, so keep your eyes open for:

  • Large bank withdrawals or transfers out of your loved one’s accounts

  • Missing belongings

  • Mood changes in your loved one, such as depression or anxiety

  • New changes to the will or power of attorney of the elderly

  • If your loved one signs documents they don’t understand

  • If your loved one doesn’t understand their financial circumstances

  • Unpaid bills

  • Eviction notices

  • The discontinuation of utilities because of unpaid bills

Even if you suspect your elder is being financially abused, you may not know who is doing the stealing.

You may be able to identify the perpetrator if they:

  • Charge too much for products or services the elderly person requires

  • Are called the elder’s “new best friend”

  • Force the elder to change their will or bank accounts

  • Have personal financial struggles

  • Make the elder’s financial decisions for them

  • Give suspicious explanations of the elder’s financial situation

  • Show a strange obsession with the money being spent by the elder

  • Use the elder’s credit cards without permission

  • Use the elder’s property or possessions without permission

  • Use authority as a way to gain the elder’s trust

How To Report Elderly Abuse

You can report elder financial abuse to Adult Protective Services (APS), a social services program in every state. Their focus of service is for elderly adults with disabilities who have fallen victim to abuse, neglect, or exploitation. Always call 911 if your loved one is in harm.

You will need to contact your local APS center in your state and then file a report with them. Read this article to learn more about how to file a report of financial elderly abuse.

How To Prevent Elderly Abuse In Finances

You will want to remain vigilant to prevent elderly abuse in finances. You can do this by registering with the Do Not Call list to reduce the chances of phone scams, seek outside perspectives, and protect personal information by shredding bank and financial documents and credit receipts.

Here’s a list of more ways you can prevent elder financial abuse:

  • Run a background check of hired help and caretakers

  • Sign up to get bank notifications each time your loved one makes a transaction above a certain amount

  • Be actively involved in the elderly’s nursing home and community

  • Know the team members who interact with your loved one regularly

  • Know how their caregivers protect your loved one’s checkbooks, ATM cards, and other financial forms (paper copies or digital)

Conclusion: Don’t Become A Victim

You now have a clear understanding of the basics of what elder financial abuse is and how it happens. You also know the signs to recognize it, what to do if you suspect it is happening, and how you can prevent it.

This is an important message, so please share this article with others you feel would benefit from it. You may also be interested in learning about how to avoid financial scams, as well as the free identity theft services provided by Boston Firefighters Credit Union.