How to Prevent Elder Financial Abuse

Elder financial abuse takes many forms, including taking money or property from an elderly person, forging an elderly person’s signature on financial documents, perpetrating scams or cons, and using undue influence or coercion to induce an elderly person to sign a power of attorney, will, or property deed. Unfortunately, most perpetrators of financial abuse are family members, including children, siblings, and grandchildren. Other perpetrators are predatory individuals who seek out vulnerable elderly persons in order to exploit them.

There are steps that families can take to protect their elderly loved ones from financial abuse. First, simply paying attention and providing frequent companionship to their elderly family members will decrease their chances of being financially exploited. Those individuals who are isolated and lonely are at a much higher risk of financial abuse. Similarly, you can monitor your loved one’s bank accounts and credit card accounts for unusual activity, including high levels of spending on unfamiliar items or services. This can be an indicator of financial abuse. If your loved one is receiving past-due notices on bills or disconnect notices on utilities, it may be a sign that money is going to places other than the monthly bills, which, again, can signal financial abuse. You also can take steps to educate your elderly loved one about potential scams. Ask him or her to discuss major financial moves or schemes with you or another trusted family member before committing to do anything or spend any money. If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Boller & Vaughan knows the ins and outs of elder abuse law and has the experience necessary to help you through any type of elder abuse claim, including incidents involving elder financial abuse. No matter what type of nursing home facility abuse or neglect is at issue in your case, we are here to help. All too often, residents and their families are reluctant to demand justice for situations that occurred in the resident’s care. In this situation, you can count on your Madison elderly abuse attorneys to guide you through every step of the personal injury claims process.